


Great Unexpectations

by junimo



Category: Stardew Valley (Video Game)
Genre: (mostly) Canon Compliant, F/M, Family, Family Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pregnancy, Rating May Change, Slow Burn, Unplanned Pregnancy, if it does it's gonna be in the epilogue, no raunchiness for now, some of them are probably ooc but im trying my best, switches between reader and seb POV fyi!, the chapter numbers are a rough estimate & also just an end goal for me
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-02
Updated: 2020-10-01
Packaged: 2021-02-28 20:02:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 59,963
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23442895
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/junimo/pseuds/junimo
Summary: It's always other people, right? Other people who fuck up and don't take precautions and end up becoming parents? It couldn't happen to you. You had just moved into Pelican Town. There was no possible way you got knocked up in a one-time mistake of a situation. Especially not with one of the few friends you had made at all in this town.Spoiler alert: You're human. You fucked up, and now you and the other person involved have to deal with the consequences.
Relationships: Sebastian/Female Player (Stardew Valley)
Comments: 116
Kudos: 245





	1. [ august, week 7 ]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello! after playing over 100 hours of this game it's a wonder why i hadn't written anything about it. 
> 
> so, i'm a sucker for sebastian. and i'm also a sucker for feel good family type stories. and reading seb's lines when the player has a family with him gets me feeling a certain way. 
> 
> had this idea in my head for a little and tinkered with it here and there, debating to actually write and post it or not. but fuck it man, it's 2020 and cringe culture sucks so i'm sticking it to the man. reader inserts are cute and if it makes u happy don't stop what ur doing for others.
> 
> ANYWAY please enjoy. i'll try to outline the timeline of both the pregnancy and the seasons in the notes for clarity. NOT BETA'D so be gentle. i'll probably fix some grammatical stuff a lot. just wanted to get this out of my google docs and onto paper finally
> 
> ((((TW for mentions of needles (blood draw), abortion, pregnancy, menstrual cycles, as well as marijuana usage))))

It wasn't supposed to end up this way. 

Then again, you had a track record of landing in positions you never could have expected in your wildest dreams. The job offer to work in one of Zuzu City's biggest office operations was the primary shocker. The emotional drainage that arose from that employment was albeit less unpredicted, but a bump in the road nonetheless. When your late grandfather's letter made its way to your doorstep, entailing the ownership of his old farmhouse and property being bestowed upon you, you were fairly certain that nothing could surprise you anymore.

Frankly, that was a crock of shit. Nearly only a few seasons into moving into the barren farmland you now owned in the homely, sparsely populated Pelican Town, you found yourself in the worst predicament yet. The two lines on the pregnancy test in your trembling hands had permanently sealed your fate for good. 

Three positives. On an overcast summer afternoon, you embarked on a pissing-on-a-stick marathon. You ran three of the confounded tests in hopes that there was a negative result, but in the end, the only thing awaiting you at the finish line were three, very bold "pregnant" results. Just looking at them made you want to throw up. (Then again, maybe that was the morning sickness talking. You were beginning to be unable to tell the difference anymore.)

In your anger you had tossed them all into the garbage bin, as if them being out of your line of sight undid all of the damage. It was a childish thing to do but it was the easiest coping method you had at that point. 

You ignored it for a couple of days, hoping the dust would settle and you'd suddenly wake up and realize it was all some crooked nightmare your brain concocted specifically to torment you. Except you never woke up, and the nausea that plagued you day in and day out was a constant reminder that yes, this was happening. And there wasn't anything you could do otherwise. 

When the sudden, inescapable urge to bring your breakfast back up hit while tending your newly planted blueberry plants, you knew there was only one thing left to do. You nabbed the discarded pregnancy tests out of your garbage, shoved them in your backpack, and headed out the door.

If you had thought the walk of shame to Harvey's clinic was the most miserable part of this ordeal yet, you surely took the notion back when you were waiting in the waiting room. One of your feet was tapping so hard and with such rhythm that you swore it would dig a hole through the tiled floor. Everything was too clean, too medical, and the scent of the recently wiped down countertop overwhelmed your senses. The tiles underneath your feet reflected back to you a distorted, warbled version of your face. You wondered if you scraped your shoes along them hard enough that it would disappear and stop reminding you of where you were at the moment.

As you desperately attempted to distance yourself from the already stressful situation, memories of not too long ago plagued your mind. The entire ordeal was flashing right before your eyes, forcing you to remember what got you into this situation. You didn't know at what point things went south, where the point of no return happened to be. All you knew is that deciding to stay behind at Sebastian's home - or, his parents' home, rather - was the beginning of a horrible chain of events.

* * *

You were freshly moved into Pelican Town when you met the ragtag trio of the valley: Abigail, Sam, and Sebastian. They were a lively bunch who were seemingly led by Sam and Abigail's impulses, causing enough of a commotion that the older townsfolk noticed, but nothing so drastic they received more than a reprimanding from the mayor. You had to admit… as a newcomer and stranger to the town, you envied having a close knit group of friends such as them. They were in your age range, whereas the rest of the town was older, save for a couple ladies and gents. Penny was a sweetheart, shy and reserved and generally too busy juggling between teaching the youngsters of the town and caring for her mother, Pam. Leah was always far too invested in her craftsmanship to socialize with those she wasn't already familiar with. Both Haley and Alex got squicked out by the unholy amount of dirt and grime you always brought into town on your clothes. Out of everyone, you had actually had a decent relationship with Maru - she was generally easy to talk to when you caught her relaxing in town after work. But the friendships just weren't as deep as you wanted them to be. You had gone from a bustling city, bursting at the seams with people, to this far less populated farm town. It was unfamiliar to go without the company of others.

Your entrance into the young group of friends was impromptu and a surprise to everyone involved. It was Abigail you first ran into and started talking to. She caught you as you were leaving the mines above the mountain lake, and despite being covered in bug guts and slime residue, she greeted you with open arms. The purple-haired girl introduced herself and invited you to join her and her posse at the Stardrop Saloon that night, and after a much needed change of clothes, you met the other two mysterious figures you had admired from afar for so long. 

Sam, being the bright and extroverted soul he is, was of course the first to greet you. The introduction was brief, however, as he quickly snapped his attention back to the game of pool you had interrupted. Judging by his furrowed brows and the intensity of his stares at the pool stick, you assumed he wasn't the one to claim victory yet. 

Directly across the billiard table, wearing a smug grin, was Sebastian. He was a unique character, that much was certain. Despite it being summer now, he still donned his signature hoodie - the dark purple, almost black one you'd caught him wearing almost every single time you glanced his way. You couldn't imagine why it would be comfortable in this weather, or how he managed to do laundry frequently enough that it seemed clean every time you saw him. You'd be lying if you didn't find it the least bit charming in a way, though.

His introduction was brief, far briefer than Sam's and Abigail's. The best you got out of him was a nod of acknowledgment, followed by a monotonous "hey" and a well-aimed push of the pool stick. The remaining two striped balls on the table sunk into the abyss of the corner holes, leaving Sam a defeated and sighing mess. You couldn't help but try and stifle a tiny laugh that threatened to break past your lips. Sam only chuckled in response.

"Hey, if you think you can compete with the likes of me, I'm down for a match with you, farmer!" Sam motioned towards the other pool sticks propped up against the saloon wall, next to the soda machine. "There's always room for a fourth party."

As you walked over to grab a stick, Sebastian let out an amused snort. "You're just wanting to play against someone who won't beat you like me, right?" 

Sam had spouted a rebuttal but you didn't quite catch it. You were too distracted by the raven-haired man standing in front of you. He stretched his back, a few stray pops from the strained muscles breaking the silence. Sebastian plopped himself back on the red couch behind him, resting his arm along the top of it and patting the seat next to him to invite Abigail over. 

Though playing in front of three strangers, one of which being the person competing against you, you secured yourself a winning match, much to Sam's playful dismay. The blonde was quick to brush the loss off of his shoulders. 

From there on out, you met with the gang every Friday, duking it out on the billiard's table. It quickly became routine and something you looked forward to after the stress of the week. After a few meetings, however, they opted for a different hangout spot. Instead of the saloon, they met at Sebastian's place to celebrate Sam's birthday. It was more of an after party, rather than the usual birthday party with cake and fun decorations. The reason they chose to go to here was clear once Sebastian had pulled out a small bag of particularly potent smelling weed. Everyone was used to leaving the man alone when he was dwelling in his basement-turned-bedroom. His parents wouldn't check in on them as much as Abigail or Sam's would.

So, left unsupervised and with dubious judgment, the four of you got decently baked and simply enjoyed the ride. It clearly wasn't the crew's first rodeo with having a smoking session, but it wasn't for you either. That being said, it had also been a long time since you last smoked. Plus your body never built much of a tolerance for it to begin with. Needless to say, you were a lightweight.

A few hours in and the fun started to subside. Sam ended up getting called home by his mom after he predictably forgot about the curfew he had set. Abigail started to crash and was unable to spend the night, for reasons you don't seem to remember thanks to being under the influence. It left you, Sebastian, and your big mouth unattended in his room. A terrible combination if you ever saw one.

It started with Sebastian mindlessly scrolling the internet on his PC while you mindlessly went through the same three apps on your phone for an unhealthy amount of time. You had noticed Sebastian being tense at some points during the night despite the weed, and your curiosity got the better of you. When you inquired about it, Sebastian flat out denied your claims. But you were having none of it. At this point all four of you were good friends, and despite Sebastian being the least talkative of the bunch, you still cared about him. Still he persisted and acted as if nothing was wrong. You figured it best to drop the subject lest he get upset - there were a good few times you were witness to one of his outbursts, and you didn't dare risk being in firing range just yet. 

But instead of being decent and keeping your mouth shut, the marijuana having lowered your ability to hesitate, you asked Sebastian a ridiculous question. 

"Is it Abigail?" You hushed out. "You two just seem like a good fit for each other," you continued to babble as you shot a glance his way. "Ever thought of going out?"

Sebastian grimaced, ceasing his typing on the keyboard. He heaved out a sigh and pinched his eyebrows with his pale, lanky fingers.

"No, I mean… she's great and all but," he grumbled almost inaudibly, "She's gay. And that's fine! Don't get me wrong." Sebastian shot his hands up defensively to prove his point. "I just… I had a crush on her. Once. We talked about it and that's when I found out she was really crushing on Haley, of all people. I kinda gave up on the idea of pursuing anything after that."

You felt a jab of pain in your chest at his words. Unreciprocated love was not unfamiliar to you, and you sympathized deeply with him. You had to give the man props though - he hid his feelings super well. He must have been used to building the sort of emotional walls you felt you constantly faced when talking to him one on one.

"I'm sorry," you sat your phone down and turned to face Sebastian in his computer chair, "I shouldn't have brought it up. I don't know why I did."

Sebastian shrugged. "It's fine. Trust me, you're not the first to ask and you won't be the last." 

You should have been satisfied with his response, but you decided to push the conversation more for some godforsaken reason unbeknownst to you. 

"You ever had any girlfriends, then?"

He took a good while to respond to your question, making you doubt the choice to ask. The answer seemed to be lodged in his throat. 

"Yeah, but it doesn't matter. None of the ones I've had seemed to really care about me as much as I cared about them. They thought my job wasn't real, they thought I was just a lonely shut-in." Sebastian heaved out a lengthy sigh, all of the air in his lungs seeming to escape. "Maybe they were right. Maybe that's all I'll ever be. Just a loser stuck in his basement in the middle of buttfuck nowhere, bound to be useless for the rest of his life."

His words shocked you. You couldn't possibly understand how he was so hard on himself when he was so good to begin with. You wanted to slap some sense into him, to shake his shoulders and exclaim all of the good qualities he had right into his face until he got the point. Instead, you found yourself walking over to him without an ounce of control in your body. The words you wanted to say to him, to reassure him he was wonderful and deserving of the love he didn't get. They could never fully rise to the surface and be said. You looked away from him sheepishly at first but dared yourself to look back at him. 

You were never going to get a chance like this again, and you'd be damned if you didn't take the leap of faith.

You leaned forward and pressed the lightest of kisses to his chapped lips - something that should have been unpleasant but was so undeniably _Sebastian_ that you adored it. It was over as quickly as it started, and you jumped back when you realized what you had done.

"I'm sorry, shit, I just think you're great and you should know that your exes are bullshit," you spouted out in one big exhale. You clenched your eyes shut, waiting for Sebastian to yell at you, to scream at you to get out of his house and never talk to him again. But your fears were greeted with a much deeper, more intense kiss than you gave him originally. His hands cupped your cheeks, gently enough that you thought he may think he could break you. It warmed your heart and you felt your cheeks flush. 

Sebastian prematurely broke the kiss and rested his forehead against your own, refusing to open his eyes and look you in the face. "I… thank you." He leaned himself back in his chair and gained the courage to make eye contact again. "Sorry if that was sudden. It just… felt nice. I wanted to return the favor."

You let out a sneaky chuckle at how his pale skin began to flush, spreading from the tips of his ears onto his cheeks and even down onto his neck. He puffed up in defense, but before he could ask you what was so amusing, you leaned back in and stole another kiss from him. This time, you worked your way into his lap, wanting to purr in delight at the way he instantly wrapped his arms around your form and pulled you flush against his chest. 

It had been a while since you had anyone you were romantically or sexually involved with, and the sensation of being touched was almost too much to handle. Judging by some of the whines that erupted from the back of Sebastian's throat when you ran your hands through the back of his hair, he was in the same boat. Neither of you wanted to think too deeply into what was happening, your senses blurred and your most primal urges took over in the place of common sense. You didn't want to talk about anything, you just wanted to feel something. Anything. You craved this intimacy and you wanted to drown in it forever.

To make a long story short, your lowered inhibitions got the best of both of you. The longer time went on afterwards, the less and less you remembered the details on that night, but one thing was for certain: you definitely, positively, ended up tangled in the sheets of Sebastian's bed. You weren't entirely certain how hot and heavy things got, but if the dark blemishes brandishing your collarbones and shoulder the next morning were indicators of anything, you certainly went beyond innocent kissing and groping. The feeling of skin pressed tightly against your own, heavy breaths panting on the back of your neck, and the full body aches you endured for days after solidified your fears.

You hadn't talked to Sebastian since the incident. In fact, you hadn't hung out with any of them since then. When they asked about your absence, you feigned illness. Abigail and Sam were gullible enough to believe it, but you weren't entirely sure Sebastian was convinced. You had no idea how much he remembered - if anything at all - but he didn't seem to be the type of guy to go brag about it to his buddies afterwards. You trusted him in that regard.

Still… you missed all of them dearly. Staying all day on your farm with your preoccupied thoughts was exhausting mentally and physically. When you missed your period at first, you blamed it on the stress of the situation. When you started showing signs of being pregnant, you had nothing to blame but yourself. It was time to quit moping about it and get yourself checked out, even if you were fairly certain you knew the outcome. But as you thought about the idea of having to tell Sebastian the truth of what was going on, suddenly finding out you were pregnant at all seemed far easier to deal with.

Fuck, you hoped this wouldn't ruin everything. 

* * *

Your thoughts were interrupted when Maru, looking professional as ever in her nursing uniform, called out your name. With a chipper attitude, far too happy for this early in the morning you felt, she led you through the cramped hallway and into the examination room on the left. She went into an almost robotic mode, taking your vitals and mentally checking things off as she went. When she was settled with poking and probing at you, she excused herself with a quick grin and told you Harvey would be in as soon as possible. For a moment you sat there on the examination table awkwardly, suddenly very unsure of what to do with yourself while you waited. You settled on swinging your legs off the side like you remembered doing as a kid during your childhood doctor's appointments.

In a flash, Harvey was back in the room with you. His face lit up, delighted at seeing you in his clinic. It dropped like an anchor when he saw the anxiety and fear written all over your face.

"Miss ____?" Harvey sat in his chair so he was eye level with you, which helped ease your anxiety slightly, "Is there something you needed to come here today for?" You gave a reluctant and somber nod. 

"Yeah, actually…" One of your hands unconsciously found its way onto your stomach, almost as if guarding it instinctively already. "I think that…"

Unable to find the words, you sighed and pulled your backpack out from behind you and rummaged through its contents until you found what you were looking for. You sat all three of the positive pregnancy tests down on the table at your side, letting Harvey connect the dots. 

"Oh… oh my." Harvey adjusted his glasses on the bridge of his nose. "Well, three positives is certainly indicative of pregnancy… but rest assured, dear. There's other tests we can run to make perfectly sure of your condition." He rolled his chair over to the counter, looking through the drawers. "When was the date of your last menstrual period?"

You told him and watched as Harvey gazed at the calendar over the sink, counting forwards from the date you gave him. You followed his finger as he pointed through all of the weeks, not feeling good about the strained look on his face. 

"I really wish you hadn't waited so long to see me. You really should have been here for your first appointment last week," Harvey sighed. You wanted to crawl in a hole and disappear. "But! That is in the past, hmm? You're here now and we can get everything right."

Your gut churned as Harvey pulled out a dreadfully sharp looking needle and syringe, along with what looked like a tourniquet and some gauze and cotton pads.

"Now, unfortunately, I'm going to have to get a small sample of blood, alright?" he rolled his chair back over to the table, giving you an assured and positive smile. "Maru can run the lab work and you'll be able to find out the results within the hour."

An hour sounded like an awful amount of time to wait, but you were grateful it wasn't a longer process. With so few patients in town, there must've not been a lot of lab work to be done on a daily basis.

With a strenuous blood draw that left you feeling like you'd gotten drained by a vampire, you were alone in the waiting room again. Harvey had you stay outside to give room for any potential walk-in patients, so you occupied yourself with your phone. Your fingers hovered over Abigail's number, tempting you to call her and spill the beans and clear the air, but you avoided the urge. You didn't have Sebastian's number and it would be best to do it in person, like a responsible adult. Like someone about to be a _parent_. The thought shook you to your core.

Lost in your head, Maru once again caught you off guard when she called your name. Harvey awaited you in the examination room, a clipboard and paper in hand. You didn't bother sitting down for the news. It wasn't going to be that much of a shock to you.

"Well, your blood results are back. I'm sure you've been eagerly awaiting this!" 

"Eagerly" wouldn't be the word you would use, but sure. You were anticipating the results to say the least. 

He scanned the paper, outlining a bunch of medical terms you couldn't bother (something about a hormone?) to understand before he noticed your confusion and cleared his throat. "You are indeed pregnant."

Your throat couldn't decide if it wanted to tighten up or if it wanted to fall into your stomach. No amount of mental preparation could truly prepare you for those words.

"But, I want you to know, there _are_ options. I don't offer the service myself as I haven't experience, but there are clinics in Zuzu City who can provide termination." Harvey placed a gentle hand on your upper arm, avoiding the one he had poked in case it was sore. "No matter what you choose, I assure you, Maru and I will provide the best possible care for you."

You wanted to cry but the tears never came. Instead they sat there, waiting for the dam to break. You couldn't do this in public, not in front of your doctor for heaven's sake. You focused all your energy into responding to his questions rather than letting everything loose.

"I… I'm not sure. I'll need time to think," your eyes darted to the floor, suddenly unable to keep eye contact with Harvey. "There's someone I may need to talk to first."

Harvey nodded and squeezed your arm. "I understand completely. However," he went back to grasping his clipboard and looking at the paper. "There are certain time constraints… and you need to be on the proper prenatal vitamins if you wish to carry to term. I can give you a week at most, but any longer is putting risk to the fetus."

The only thing you could do was nod. A burning question in the back of your mind begged to be asked. "How old is it?" 

"According to your last menstrual date, and erm…" he drummed his fingers against the wood of the clipboard, "your, how do you say, date of conception? We're looking at about seven weeks. The clinics in Zuzu City generally accept up to sixteen weeks, but you're going to need to make a decision sooner than that, I'm afraid. Don't want to neglect the fetus's medical needs if you're planning to continue the pregnancy."

It was a lot of information to take in all at once, but you kept your composure to the best of your ability. You weren't sure what you wanted to do. You had always respected the choices of those who got an abortion and those who chose to carry - either way it wasn't your business to you. Yet when you were in the same position, the lines began to get less gray. You had an inkling of an idea of what route you were going to take but you needed time to finalize it. 

You left the clinic a couple of hours after you arrived, still feeling as heavy hearted as when you stepped foot inside. Your heart dropped when a familiar voice in the town plaza called out your name.

"_____! Welcome back to the land of the living!"

Of course. It was Abigail. It would have been fine if it was just her, but tagging alongside her was none other than Sebastian, who barely looked up from his phone to notice you. 

"It's nice to see you!" You forced out a laugh and prayed it came off as genuine. You were excited to see her, that part wasn't a fib. Just not exactly under these circumstances, nor with the additional company. "I'm sorry I dropped off the face of the planet, just felt like death and didn't wanna spread anything to you guys."

Abigail gave an understanding nod and jabbed Sebastian in the shoulder, earning her a sharp glare. He took the hint and greeted you as well, though hardly appearing as if he meant his words. You weren't sure if he just didn't give a shit, or if his disinterest was a ploy to hide his feelings about being left in the dark. For your own sake, you hoped it to be the latter option.

"Well, I've really got to get back to the farm, gotta work on getting my crops in tip-top shape for the fair soon!" You hoped it was a reasonable enough excuse to leave the conversation. It seemed to work for the most part. 

"Aw man, well we gotta hang out soon, okay? We missed you on saloon nights!" Abigail gave a playful punch to your arm, making you self conscious that they would see the bandage from the blood draw. You made an attempt to slyly pull your sleeve down on that arm. It wasn't the most graceful thing in the world, but it went unnoticed.

"Of course! Tell Sam I'm gonna kick his ass and settle our score!" You called out as you quickly began pacing towards the end of town, eager to be in the safety of home.

Abigail gave you a final wave goodbye and hollered out to Sebastian, who was standing still in place where he was when you left.

"C'mon, what's wrong with you? Your head's in the clouds. That's Sam's thing, not yours." She tugged on the sleeve of Sebastian's prized hoodie and coaxed him to follow her. "We gotta dip before we're late for practice."

If you had eyes on the back of your head, you would have seen the concerned and fearful look on Sebastian's face as you left. His eyes followed you until you were out of sight, surprised you didn't feel his staring.

"Oh, yeah, sorry. Zoned out for a sec." Sebastian gathered himself and followed Abigail towards Sam's house, but not before shooting one last worried glance in your direction.

He knew something was up, but he wasn't sure what to do about it. Only time could tell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> LMK if that was too spicy for mature and i'll move to explicit. 
> 
> feel free to leave comments, kudos, whatevers! i'll try and respond asap. i have multiple chapters planned for this on a google doc outline and await writing in the future! may not be on a schedule since life is chaotic rn but i'll try my best. have a good one!!


	2. [ august, week 7 ]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The next day after Sebastian and Abigail caught you leaving Harvey's clinic, you drop the news to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW for suicidal ideation in the second half (from sebs pov). it's brief but it's still there!
> 
> i'm sorry for making seb such a jerk, but honestly i think it's not too far off from how he would be. especially with someone who he hasn't been romantically involved with! he's gonna get better though, i promise ❤
> 
> also the bits about sebs father arent canon, but it adds some ~mental anguish~ and a reason for him to not ditch the reader, right?

Friday night rolled around far sooner than you bargained for. As you sat back on one of the sofas in the familiar sideroom of the Stardrop Saloon, you still had no idea how you were going to approach the situation with Sebastian. There was no way you were going to admit everything in public where you risked any of the other townsfolk overhearing. Even meeting outside of the saloon threatened the sanctity of your conversation if anyone was nosy enough when they were walking home. Trying to be sneaky about it now was futile - you knew within your heart that Sebastian was onto your case. The side glances you caught him giving you when he thought you were too focused on watching Sam and Abigail play pool were obvious. 

While the two friends were in the zone and oblivious to the outside world, you gulped and forced yourself to swallow your panic. Sebastian must have heard it, or maybe he felt the air between you two getting heavier, you weren't sure. He finally turned his head towards you fully, his arms held tightly across his body, everything about his body language screaming that he would rather be anywhere else. You couldn't find it within your heart to care too much; you would much rather be in any other situation, he had no idea how uncomfortable you were because of all of this. 

"We need to talk." Your voice broke the silence, feeling much louder than you intended it to be. "Can't do it here though." 

Sebastian squinted his eyes but couldn't hold onto the expression for too long. He was beyond relieved that you were finally talking to him again, even if it had to be in secrecy apparently. The man gave a curt nod of understanding but still had to break eye contact with you. A mix of anger and frustration tended to bubble in his chest when he looked at you. He wanted to be upset, and he was, but he was clinging onto the same exact memories you were struggling to deal with. It made conversation difficult when all he could think of when your eyes met his was the sound of you breathless in his ears - even if he was still pissed that you ditched him for days after the fact.

"Meet me outside in five," he murmured under his breath so only you would catch it. Sebastian let out a grunt as he sat up, pulling a pack of cigarettes out of his back pocket. "I'm going out for a smoke," he raised his voice a couple of notches to burst Abigail and Sam's bubble, "I'll be back in a sec."

They both barely responded, having been used to their friend's routine smoke breaks for years now. Sam shot his friend a thumbs up without breaking his concentration on the game. You were thankful that they wouldn't have given it a second thought. The challenge now was slipping out without being suspicious and drawing unnecessary attention to yourself.

A couple of minutes passed and you still hadn't the slightest idea of how to go about this. It was a good thing you weren't a spy or a secret agent or something. You would have been fired on the spot.

You did the most nonchalant thing you could think of: you let out an obnoxiously loud yawn, even pairing it with an equally exaggerated stretch. Sam looked up from the pool table and laughed. 

"Calling it a night already, _____? It's barely seven!" he instantly regretted opening his mouth, because Abigail used the window of opportunity when he was distracted to sink one of his balls right in front of his face. Abigail cackled out maniacally at her win.

"Oh stop it Sam, you know she's got that farm she works on all day." Abigail cocked an eyebrow Sam's way as he lined up his pool stick with the most serious look on his face. "It's more than you do, I'm sure!"

The jab made Sam flinch, the pool stick hitting a ways away from where he was intending to aim. "I'm ignoring you, Abi." Clearly he wasn't, since he was actually responding to her taunt, but you didn't comment on it.

"It's been really nice seeing you guys again, sorry I had to throw in the towel so early."

Abigail and Sam both gave you a wave goodbye, but not before mentioning to say goodnight to Sebastian too. 

"He shouldn't be too far off," Sam mentioned, "probably just around the corner. Gus just hates Seb leaving his cigarette butts on the sidewalk."

You forced yourself to laugh and swallowed the bile that was rapidly rising in your throat. "Alright, thank you for the heads up!"

The cooled air of the night hit you as soon as you were past the saloon door, having chilled from the transformation of summer into fall. You were immensely grateful for the relief it provided. Being inside the saloon was beginning to feel suffocating with too many people around you and too many thoughts inside your head. 

You caught Sebastian a couple of paces down from the saloon, propped against one of the street lamps. He wasn't slouching like you normally caught him doing. Rather, his stance was unnaturally stiff and tense, with his back straight and fingers firmly gripping the lit cigarette in his hand. He made no effort to come to you, even after you both made eye contact and you knew he had seen you. You forced yourself to move towards him, scared that if you didn't move at that moment, he would run off and leave you hanging outside alone. Which, considering you did something similar to him, you felt it was a worthy punishment. 

You weakly mumbled a "hey", having left all the courage to do this back inside the saloon walls. You gave enough space between the two of you that another person could fit comfortably there, easily. Sebastian didn't seem like he wanted you anywhere near him and you weren't about to test the waters.

"Hold on." He interrupted your train of thought. "Follow me, got a better place for this." Sebastian pointed his thumb behind him, in the direction of the small fenced area behind Sam's house. 

You wordlessly followed in his shadow as he took you underneath one of the trees, leaning back against it and putting all his weight against the sturdy trunk. He must not have been feeling very stable himself. With the light from the street lamp abandoned, you were only able to make out his face in the dark when he took a hit off of his cigarette. The glow painted his features a shade of amber, and the shadows of his face were accentuated by the change in lighting.

"So…" he started, smoke pouring from his lips as he exhaled. He showed no signs of initiating the conversation - after all, _you_ were the one who made him come out all this way - so you relented and took a deep breath to ground yourself.

"There's something I need to tell you," you mumbled, eyes fixated on his busted up sneakers rather than his face, "but I don't know the right words to say."

Sebastian scoffed before taking another drag. He paused for a moment afterwards, gathering his thoughts. 

"Of course. That's why we fucked and you never spoke to me again, right?"

His words stung, laced with venom and a hint of anguish. You knew it came from a place of hurt rather than malice, but it didn't lessen the blow any.

"Excuse me?" You unintentionally rose your voice in defense, but knocked it back down once you realized someone could be in shouting distance. "That's not true!"

Sebastian huffed in annoyance. "You didn't talk to me for weeks. Fuck, you didn't talk to _anyone_ for weeks. How am I supposed to take that in any way besides you dodging me?"

"I can explain, if you'll let me." You felt tears beginning to sting the corners of your eyes as you brought your arms together in front of your chest. "Please."

Another grunt of irritation. But this time Sebastian allowed you to speak, focusing on finishing his cigarette as he suddenly craved its relief more than ever.

"I…" you stuttered out, blinking away the tears that threatened to spill over. They prickled your skin and felt like acid. "I saw Harvey… I wasn't lying to you all when I told you I was sick." 

The moment dragged on for what seemed like eons, the distance between you two feeling further than it had been before. Sebastian's patience was running thin, you could tell by the way his fingers twitched absentmindedly at his sides. But you didn't miss the way panic began to obscure the once irritated expression on his thin face.

Now or never. Here went nothing.

"I'm pregnant."

Seconds passed and neither of you spoke. The town became so silent that the only thing you could hear was the both of you breathing in the autumn air. All you could focus on was the smell of cigarette smoke, fogging your brain and making you feel more ill than you already were.

"Don't mess around like that, _____."

A joke. He thought you were joking.

"Why the hell would I joke about this, Sebastian? Do you not take me seriously?" 

With a final drag of his cigarette, nicotine flowing through his lungs and numbing him, he stomped the offending material into the dirt and ground it to an unrecognizable pulp. 

"I do! Fuck!" He roughly ran a hand through his side swept hair, the pitch of his voice rising fueled by his panic. "I just hoped you were fucking around, not being serious."

For the umpteenth time this night, you were left without the words to respond with.

"Yeah, well, I'm not," you stared as Sebastian rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands, "I came here to tell you. I don't know what to do."

Sebastian's head snapped up towards you. "Does it look like I have any ideas either, _____? I can't take care of a kid. I don't even like kids." 

"Look, I don't either! I'm too young to even entertain the idea of children, but I don't have a choice anymore!" 

"You do! I've been to the city. There's health clinics that can get rid of..." he motioned towards your stomach with both hands, "...of it."

The way he referred to the life growing inside of you as if it was an inanimate object infuriated you. An _it_. Not a he or she, or even a they. Something he didn't consider to be his own flesh and blood, that he wasn't equally responsible for. You clenched one of fists so hard you thought the skin would rip right off of your knuckles. Yet you forced yourself back from a boil down to a simmer, voice evening out, because if you didn't control yourself, you were sure to scream so loudly that the whole of the valley would hear.

"I came here," you finally met his eyes and gave back twice of the daggers he was staring into your own, "to see if you would care if I did that." 

Choking back a sob, you continued. "Clearly, I was wrong."

Sebastian couldn't stand to look at you anymore. He glared at the mangled cigarette underneath the sole of his shoe.

"Maybe you were." 

The ground underneath you began to give, and your heart sunk with it. All the fight you had left in you shattered into shards that penetrated your chest.

"I guess I'll leave you out of this then. Since you don't want to recognize you had a part in this, too."

Sebastian was silent. He knew you were right, that he was as much to blame as you were. You weren't the Virgin Mary, and neither of you had been in a right enough state of mind to give two shits about being safe. Unchecked lust and horrible decision-making skills lead you to where you both were standing, and the bump you covered with loose clothing was proof of the fact. 

That didn't mean he wanted to suddenly be locked down and involved, though. And you knew you were powerless to change his stubborn, bullheaded behavior.

"Goodnight, _____." 

Sebastian left without a trace of sympathy, his shadowy figure long gone by the time your legs were able to move again.

This really was some horrible nightmare you desperately wanted to wake up from.

* * *

Sebastian's wiry frame loomed over his motorcycle in the garage. Neither his mom nor Demetrius were home yet, still busy gallivanting the night away at the saloon. At first he was going to storm home and smoke a bowl until he forgot where he was, but his brain was quick to point out that weed was what got him in this situation in the first place. 

Fantastic, he thought, another thing he once enjoyed completely soured by his own fuckups. 

Sebastian swiftly pulled the waterproof cover draped over his motorcycle and tossed it to the concrete floor haphazardly. He left the garage door wide open before he drove off; nobody was around to steal anything. Linus never really interacted with his family and wouldn't bother trying to sneak off with their belongings. He was a weird man, sure, but he wasn't a thief. Plus it left a wordless explanation for his mom when she and Demetrius inevitably came back home. He was out driving his bike, as he did when he needed to clear his head and get away from everything. Nothing new. Nobody would come looking for him. They knew better.

Underneath the moonlight, admiring the cityscape from afar, Sebastian sped down the dirt road until the wind whipped his ears. The breeze was enough to make him shiver, but he didn't pay it any mind. His mind was miles away, thinking of you, of that night, of the uncertainty of his future because of it. He slammed his foot against the gas, reaching a speed he rarely ever achieved. It was an attempt to outrace his own head but it proved useless in the end.

No matter how fast he went, he eventually had to stop. And stopping meant putting on the brakes and facing reality - something he was always desperate to avoid. It's why he enjoyed being online so much, why his happiest memories were that of playing Solarian Chronicles with Abigail and Sam - he could be whoever he wanted to be. He didn't have to be present in the moment, nor did he have to deal with the issues that plagued his mind constantly. 

The cliffside he found himself so drawn to was rapidly approaching before his reflexes could catch up with the rest of him. Panicking, he entrusted his safety to the hand brakes. Squeezing just enough to bring them to life, his brakes screeched as they struggled to bring the motorcycle to a halt in time. Dust and rocks flew every which way, the occasional pebble flying past his face and leaving a scrape along his cheeks. He was within inches of flying off of that cliff, into the dark unknown that laid beneath the rocks and treeline, but thankfully his wheels never left the ground. As he sat there on his bike, a leg kicked out to balance the thing from falling on its side, Sebastian wheezed as he tried to catch his breath. His heart pounded against his chest, wanting to burst out like some sort of alien in a scifi movie he watched once. He let himself relax - as best someone can when they realize they were seconds away from a death sentence - and the bitterness of the air settled into his bones. 

For a moment, the thought flashed in his head to finish what he started and take the dive off the cliffside. The time and strength it took for him to shake away the idea concerned the rational part of his head. No, he couldn't do that, as tempting as it was sometimes. He knew Sam would be a shitty dungeon master, and he still owed Abigail something nice for the frozen tear she worked tooth and nail to find for him. 

And you were having his kid.

Was he really going to pull the same stunt his own dad did when he ditched his mom? No, he wasn't about be compared to that son of a bitch. But he still wasn't in any position to be preparing to be a father, either.

Maybe that's what his dad was feeling when he left. Sebastian shoved the thought away instantly; it would be a cold day in Hell before he had a shred of sympathy for that man.

The engine of his motorcycle grumbled before fully starting up, encouraged by a few hard taps to the outside of the bike. As Sebastian rode back to his house, his brain went quiet for once, like radio static. It only ever did that after a huge emotional outburst, internalized or not. It was strange, but was also comforting in some sort of way. His head may have hated him, and he may have hated it in return, but at least it knew when to quit fighting him.

He caught Robin as she was headed back into the house, tailed closely by Demetrius. As Sebastian walked the motorcycle into the garage and shielded it back with its cover, the older man began attempting to lecture on the importance of protective gear. Something about how he had friends in the medical field who referred to motorcyclists as "organ donors on wheels", but he let the insults roll off of him. Robin snaped at her husband that was enough already, telling him that she had it covered and for him to just go inside. Visibly annoyed, Demetrius forced his way past his wife and half-son, shutting the door just a touch too hard for Sebastian's liking. His mom carved that door from scratch, asshole.

Robin sighed deeply and put her hands on her waist, like she always did when her kids were in trouble. It made Sebastian feel like he was a young boy being scolded for not eating everything on his dinner plate again.

"Sebastian," she called out as he pulled the garage door shut, "What's wrong with you? You know we've talked about using the helmet-"

Sebastian tried to cut her off and push past her to go inside without confrontation, but was stopped short when Robin noticed how rough he looked.

"Are those scratches on your face, Seb? What happened?" She ran a hand up to his face and cupped it gently, reeling back when she heard Sebastian hiss at the sting of her accidentally touching one of the scrapes.

"Nothing," he groaned, "just hit a rock in the road. 'M fine." 

Robin wasn't satisfied, but he was still in one piece, which was more than she could ask for.

"Get inside, you need those cuts cleaned up." She pointed a finger accusedly at the biggest of the wounds. "Plus you got dirt all over you." Sebastian knew it was useless to try and argue his way out of this. 

Inside their bathroom, Sebastian dabbed a damp washcloth against the scratches on his face, careful not to aggravate them too much. By the time he was finished patching himself up, the once white washcloth had been stained shades of brown and red from the dirt and dried blood. His mom wasn't going to be happy about that.

Robin caught him as he sulked back to his room, grabbing him by a hand on the shoulder. She turned him to face her and she struggled to read the expression on his face.

"Sebby, what's going on with you?"

The childhood nickname almost broke him, but he kept himself steady. "I've just got some stuff on my mind, mom. Sorry for scaring you."

The hand on his shoulder pulled him into a warm embrace, made the slightest bit awkward due to the difference in height between them. He appreciated the notion nonetheless.

"Please just talk to us, Seb. Whatever is wrong we can work through it together, as a family."

Family. It was the last word he wanted to think of right now.

"I will, mom. But I promise. I'm fine."

He was lying. Everything was anything but fine. But he couldn't bare to tell his mom that, not when she was clinging onto him like she almost lost him to a couple of scratches on his face. She had known him since before he was born, and she knew when he was hiding something, he was well aware of that. He just needed time to think before he could even consider talking to someone about this right now.

Sebastian excused himself to his room and bid his mom goodnight. As he laid in bed, staring up at the ceiling as if it would give him answers for what he needed to do, your face came to mind. The way your bottom lip quivered as you yelled at him, the way you were using all of your strength to keep from breaking down completely in front of him. The way your voice shook when you tried to reason with him. He rubbed his eyes as if he could force away the visions out of his head. 

He had to talk to you. He wasn't sure if you would be willing to hear him out, but he needed to make things right. The only question now was how to go about repairing the damage he caused.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> rubs hands together..... 
> 
> it gets worse before it gets better! there's gonna be some screwups but neither the reader nor seb are prepared for any of this, so it's to be expected. good times are ahead, just bare with the angst!!


	3. [ august, week 7 ]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You process everything, and Sebastian attempts to make things up to you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> no TWs this time! (besides excessive use of commas and Yoba)
> 
> from here on out, expect chapters to be divided between the reader and sebs pov. i may switch it up but i like writing from both sides!
> 
> i'm not entirely satisfied with this chapter and will likely go and change things at some point, but the more i nitpick the less likely i am to post. i think it's better for me to just go ahead and post something i think could be improved and work on it later than to ignore it completely. plus y'alls feedback really encourages me to keep going! i gotta do it for you guys
> 
> how could i forget our dear reader, according to the game, has a pet? they chose the cat option apparently. the name milo is indeed a nod to "milo and otis", a childhood movie of mine that is now ruined because of the controversy of it but still gave a cute name idea. (seriously, the producers of that movie can catch these hands)

You cried yourself to sleep that night.

By the time your feet hit the familiar wood floor of the farmhouse porch, tears had already begun to flow freely down your cheeks and chin. They stained your shirt and dampened the soft material at your collar. Once you found yourself inside, you barely had the strength to keep yourself upright. You bumped your back into the hard wood of the door and slumped down all the way to the ground, curling your arms protectively around your knees and bringing them to your chest. The sounds of your sobbing caught the attention of Milo, the adventurous orange tabby cat who wandered onto the farm a few days after you moved in. In a blur of orange and white, he ran to your aid, headbutting your side in an effort to convince you to pet him. It worked, and you lost yourself in the sensation of his soft fur, running your fingers through it to give yourself something else to focus on.

"Good kitty." Your voice cracked as you gave a particularly appreciated scratch on his chin. "Thank you, bud." 

Milo chirped in response. You didn't speak cat, but he seemed happy to help you in such dire need. Even as you calmed down, trails of snot and tears all over your face and shirt, the tabby remained curled against you, purring so loudly he was practically vibrating.

At least someone was there for you. Even if it wasn't a human, just a pet incapable of giving you any verbal support. You wondered if he had any idea of what was going on around him. Your mom had mentioned to you once about how the family dog began acting weird before she even knew she was pregnant with you. Maybe Milo could sense it, somehow. The thought brought you a little comfort.

Eventually you had to get up. When you finally braced yourself against the door and got back upright, your head felt like it was on the verge of exploding. Extremely hard cries always tended to give you a migraine afterwards. 

You took a moment to pour yourself some water from the kitchen sink and propped yourself against the counter. Your eyes panned across the farmhouse's interior; the kitchen was in major need of an upgrade, having barely enough space for just you and Milo, not to mention the rest of your living situation was just as cramped and suffocating. How on Yoba's green Earth were you going to raise a child here? You didn't even have a nursery. The only person in town you figured capable of building onto the farmhouse was Robin. Which meant having to go to her house and risk being spotted by Sebastian. That was clearly a no-go. Damn.

Thinking about him made your heart sink again, but you refused to let him get to you twice in one night. You were going to be fine, you didn't need his support, right? You heard many a success story of single mothers, surely you could be among those statistics. Jodi wasn't exactly single, but she made it by without the aid of her deployed husband. You had one person to go to, at least. 

Except you couldn't do that either. Not when Sam was always around his family. If he noticed you coming over and talking to his mom, he lacked the self control to mind his business. And you were positive the news would go back to Sebastian. He had known him for years; there was no way you would take precedence over a friendship that lasted years, maybe even a lifetime. 

The only other parents in town were Caroline and Pierre. Out of all of the adults in town, you interacted the least with them. There was also Pam, but she didn't seem the type of mother that would provide any noteworthy or useful advice. Caroline and Pierre were also out of the question, since they were Abigail's parents. She might have been able to bite her tongue better, but it was impossible to imagine she wouldn't blab to Sebastian about you.

This was hopeless.

Setting your empty glass of water in the bottom of the sink, you meandered to your bedroom and began digging in your wardrobe for a change of clothes you desperately needed. The change from your loose top and denim jeans into a warm pair of pajamas didn't completely fix your mood, but it was a start. Milo noticed your absence and followed you closely, the little pitter patter of his paws on the floor bringing a smile to your face. He wedged his furry self between your feet and wrapped a slender tail around one of your legs. When you glanced down at him, he was staring right back up at you with round, golden eyes. He usually only gave you such soft looks when he wanted his kibble or to go outside, but he wanted neither of those things. If he did, he would have ran to the source of his problems and coax you over with pitiful meows. Instead, he stayed right where he was, as if telling you everything was alright. 

"Let's go to bed buddy." You crawled onto your rickety old bed, covered with a blanket that was thinner than you would have preferred now that it was cooling down at night. He hopped into bed with you, once again returning to curl into a ball at your side. Within minutes the cat was snoring, opting to roll onto his back and expose his belly in his slumber. 

Unfortunately, sleep didn't come to you nearly as easily as it did Milo. Every time you closed your eyes, Sebastian's voice echoed in your mind. No matter how hard you tried to forget, he still came back to haunt you all night. You found yourself clinging onto the spare pillow you had, wrapping your arms around it and burying your face in it like it was a person. At first you didn't imagine anyone in particular. But your brain was a huge jerk, and it eventually made you imagine the pillow was Sebastian instead. Not even in a romantic way, either. You just needed the embrace. You imagined being woken up by a phone call, or a text, or a knock at your door, anything. You wished it would be him, coming to tell you he was sorry, that he never meant to hurt you. But deep in your heart, you knew that wouldn't happen. He didn't care about you, clearly not with how he broke you in only a mere few words. He had better things to worry about. You deserved to be left alone after you did the same thing to him. It was an eye for an eye.

At some point in the early hours, Milo got aggravated by your tossing and turning and plopped off the bed, waking you up from the first restful sleep you were able to get. You tried to not hold it against him, cats were fickle that way. Rolling over in bed, you checked your phone for the time and winced as the bright screen temporarily blinded you. After your eyes finally adjusted to the intrusion, you were able to make out the numbers "05:39". The sun wasn't even up yet. You had checked with a click glance to the window across the room.

No matter what you did, you never were able to fall back asleep. Still in your pajamas - you weren't going to change until the last minute, you were comfortable dammit! - you made yourself a sugary breakfast of pancakes, topped with your own harvested strawberries from the spring. You also added an excessive serving of whip cream to finish it all off. You had a rough night and you deserved it.

Much to your dismay, it wasn't even enjoyable. You could thank the fact you threw it all back up barely halfway through the meal for that. This whole "morning sickness" thing was beginning to really, really get on your last nerves. You needed to ask Harvey about when that began to calm down and finally quit.

The sun rose within the next hour, and you admired the sunrise from the porch steps. There was a serene breeze that floated through the valley, bringing the change of seasons with it. The leaves in the overgrown forest of your farmland were starting to turn. You knew there was a positive somewhere to putting off chopping down those trees.

Once the sun was finally at its resting point in the sky, you heaved yourself off of the steps and decided you needed to do something productive today. If not to make progress for the crops you planned to showcase at the fair, it would at least provide a distraction. You busied yourself with digging some new lines of soil, tilling them and dropping in some pumpkin seeds. They would likely be finished growing well past the deadline for the fair, but you looked forward to seeing the efforts of your hard work bloom regardless. You envisioned the vegetables ripe and supple, Milo using one of them he deemed suitable as a resting spot. But the image began to change, and morphed into something that hurt you more than anything else. You pictured a young child, still grasping the whole concept of walking, playing amongst the plants. Sebastian was there too, carving a mediocre jack-o-lantern face into the flesh of the pumpkin. He looked up at you and shot a toothy grin your way before he was interrupted by the youngster tackling him into the dirt. He playfully shouted out for help, over exaggerating his fear and reaching a hand out for you to reach and pull him to safety.

It wasn't until you heard Milo hissing that you snapped out of it. The cat was up in arms over a snake that slithered out through the bushes and onto the bottom porch step. You called out for Milo to leave it be, but the dumb thing thwacked it with a mighty front paw. You feared him getting bit and grabbed your hoe for a weapon to hit the snake with, but the reptile only hissed right back at him. Offended by the statement, Milo skittered off the porch and found you in the field, tucking tail behind you. 

_Some farm cat you are_ , you thought. With its dark, almost obsidian scales, you recognized it to be a harmless rat snake. It slithered off from the bushes and retreated to a hole behind the shipping box next to the house. The way it slinked around and caused so much trouble reminded you of a certain man, whose hair shared the same pitch black color as its plentiful scales.

You sighed. You really needed to find yourself something better to do than stand around and see this asshole in everything around you, today.

* * *

Evening rolled around in the valley, painting the entire town shades of orange and yellow. Sebastian stood at the edge of the lake by his house, inhaling the smoke of his cigarette like his life depended on it. He stared out into the vast expanse of water, which under the sunlight had been stained into what looked like liquid gold. 

He had been planning on talking to you for hours now. He skipped dinner, his appetite having left him long before the food was ready. Sebastian never could figure out the exact words he was going to say. He was trapped in a cycle of thinking it wouldn't be enough, that it was pointless to do this, before remembering his dad and knowing if he kept quiet he would be no better than him. 

What if you kicked him to the curb before he even had a chance? How would he go on every day knowing he knocked you up, denied caring about it, and never even getting to apologize? He wouldn't, that's for damn sure. Not with a clear conscience.

The thing was, he was lodged between a rock and a hard place. Sebastian wasn't ready to be a parent. He couldn't even take care of himself, one look at his diet and sleep schedule could tell you that. His job was paying decently enough, but he would have to work until his fingers bled to get a promotion of any kind. His income was sufficient for getting rent and his phone and internet bills paid, but he still struggled to be comfortable. 

Yet at the other end of the spectrum, if he ditched you, he would surely be ostracized for it. His parents didn't need any more reasons to be disappointed in him. The rest of the town, save for Abigail and Sam, already had their qualms with him. Doing nothing and letting you raise this kid by yourself was asking for social suicide. Even if he did step up and become involved, the fact you weren't married, and especially the fact you weren't even dating, was sure to be the conversations and gossip the town craved to hear.

His lips met the taste of ash, and Sebastian knew he hit the end of his cig. It hadn't even felt like he smoked it at all; the buzz wasn't as deep as it usually was, and he was still painfully aware of his troubles. Plucking the cigarette from between his teeth and flicking it into the lake, Sebastian forced himself to move. He could take as long as he needed to walk from here to your farmhouse, but he had to get there eventually. 

As he went up the incline next to his house, he passed by Maru, who was diligently tinkering with her robotic experiments outside. Sebastian picked up the pace and tried to go without being seen, but a stick that cracked under the weight of his foot alerted her of his presence. The two siblings locked eyes and went a moment before saying anything.

"Where are you going?" Maru questioned her brother, despite having a hunch of his destination. 

"Uh…" Sebastian held his hands inside the front pocket of his hoodie and rubbed them nervously, "Railroad. Up there." He nudged his head in the direction of the upper part of the hill. "Gotta meet Abigail there."

"I just got back from a run to the general store. She was in there helping Pierre stock the shelves." Maru's eyes squinted. Sebastian hoped it was just the sunlight hitting her glasses. 

"Oh. Huh." 

"I'm going to ask you one more time. What are you up to?"

It was useless to try and deny anything now. Sebastian was positive Maru was working the day he ran into you outside of the clinic. She and Harvey were guaranteed to know what was going on. He had no idea if you told them who the father was or not, but if he was too suspicious they were sure to draw the conclusion.

"I WAS going to meet Abigail. I guess I mixed the days up." Sebastian began walking away before Maru had a chance to interrogate him further. "Anyway, sorry for interrupting your uh… project. See ya."

He heard his sister call out his name but ignored it in favor of picking up the speed. Sebastian didn't have time to explain what he was doing, and he didn't owe her an explanation. He was an adult and could come and go how he pleased. He didn't need permission.

Fuck, the man didn't even know what he was planning. He was going on the fly with all of this. Sebastian prayed to any deity that felt like listening that he would pull himself together before he got to your farmhouse. 

Yoba despised him. Why else would he decide to part the clouds and cause them to pour out of nowhere? Sebastian barely had a chance to react, the sudden downpour never giving him a warning that it was about to drown him. He pulled his hood over his head, now self conscious his hair was going to be a mess from being confined in it. It's not like you would notice anyway. You most likely were going to kick him out before his mouth even opened.

The pouring rain deafened him as he ran across the clearing between your houses. He almost slipped into the mud on a few occasions but managed to not fall on his ass each time. Good, the last thing he needed right now was to make a fool out of himself and look like he decided to indulge in an _au naturale_ mud bath.

His feet carried him to your front porch. Sebastian hadn't been on this property since before you moved in; he and Abigail spent many hours ransacking the abandoned building for goodies. Now that you had moved in, you breathed life back into the place. The wood looked cleaner and more polished than he ever had seen it before. You even had begun to repaint the exterior, judging by the half opened paint can at the end of the porch. 

A brief but polite "Meow!" tore him from his musings.

You… also had a cat. Sebastian didn't even know where you would have adopted one from, besides maybe the city. He didn't remember you bringing this one with you, though. He withheld the urge to pet the feline - he had more important things to do. But he promised the kitty he would be back for pets later.

Sebastian's bony knuckles drummed against your door in a rhythmic pattern. He waited a few moments, awaiting the sound of footsteps towards it, but he was met with silence. It wasn't unexpected of you. When you still ignored him, Sebastian got bold and waltzed closer, pressing his ear directly against the door. Still, nothing. 

A brief moving of window blinds caught his attention. You were trying to sneak a peek at who was outside.

"I can see you. I know you're in there." 

Sebastian heard a muffled reply through the wood but couldn't make out what you were saying. He asked you to repeat yourself.

"I said go away!"

Okay, that he understood.

"Please, _____."

"What the hell do you want? I thought you wanted nothing to do with me?"

The way your voice cracked at the end of your sentence killed him. He did that to you. Having to face you after he hurt you so badly was going to be hell.

"Just give me five minutes. I want to talk."

He heard you let out a sigh. He couldn't blame you, he was pretty sick of himself too.

"Fine."

"Thank you-" Sebastian's thanks were interrupted as you swung the door open, unaware he was pressed against it. He fell forwards without the weight of the door supporting him, headed directly for the wood underneath your feet. He caught himself two seconds shy of eating dirt by clinging onto the frame of the doorway.

When he caught his breath and looked up at you, you weren't amused. Your eyes were slightly swollen and puffy, sclera reddened from hours of crying under your belt. You looked miserable.

"Five minutes," you spat, not at all helping him back to his feet, "you get five minutes."

Dusting himself off, Sebastian stood there awkwardly, trying to manifest the right things to say. He could hardly look at you with how crushed you appeared. All he could see in your eyes was the reflection of his mistakes.

"First off, I'm… really sorry. I shouldn't have walked away when I did."

"You shouldn't have walked away at all, Sebastian." 

That was a fair point. A better man would have stuck around and actually communicated his thoughts and feelings. But a better man he was not.

"I know. I'm sorry."

You cleared your throat, urging him to continue on. Right. He had a time limit with this.

"I don't know what to do. I'm not ready to be a dad. I didn't think this kind of thing could happen," his hands returned to the safety of his pockets, the hood remaining on his head long forgotten, "I know you're just as lost as me about this. I want you to know that… I do care."

Sebastian watched as you walked off and he was certain he had blew it. But you didn't shove him outside and tell him to get lost. Instead, you called him over to your kitchen table and wordlessly beckoned him to sit. 

He obeyed your orders and sat across from you, laying his arms on the table in front of him. He rubbed at the sleeves of his hoodie anxiously.

"Listen, I know it's not about me, but I really didn't have a good example set up for how dads should be. I'm clueless to all of this. I want to help… I want to be there for you. But I don't know how."

He hoped you appreciated his honesty. He was right, it wasn't about him, but you had to see from his perspective too.

"Well, for starters, you don't leave mid-conversation and act like a huge dick."

Sebastian winced. That much was a given.

"You also should consider how I feel too. I know being a parent isn't what you want to do right now, but it's not like I wanted this either." Your face saddened and you hid your hands in your lap. Sebastian regret not knowing how to deal with other people's problems better. Should he reach across the table and grab your hand? Was that comforting? He decided he shouldn't, since you two weren't that close and he didn't think you would take kindly to him touching you again any time soon.

"I'm sorry, _____. You don't have to believe me, but I really am." Sebastian looked anywhere but your eyes, knowing if they locked and he had to see you fighting back tears he'd lose it. "I'm not the best with controlling my temper sometimes."

You chuffed. "Clearly."

The pair of you sat in silence once more. Instead of hearing the hum of the streetlamps like last night, the only sound you both heard was the downpour outside. Sebastian exhaled a breath he didn't know he was holding in.

"Here," he dug in his back pocket and pulled out his phone, "you can have my number. If you need to talk at all I'll be there."

You looked him up and down, searching for any hint of foul play. "Fine." You searched for your own phone and swapped it across the table with his. The pair of you exchanged phones, entering your numbers on each other's contacts before returning them to their rightful owner. "Can't guarantee it won't be super late at night though. I can hardly sleep with the heartburn and the urge to vomit most nights."

Sebastian scowled at the thought. "It's okay," he admitted, "I'm up pretty late anyway. I don't have a real reason for it though. Just have a shitty sleep schedule with work."

You went quiet, face concentrating in thought. "I don't think I've ever asked but, what is your job?"

He didn't expect you to give two hoots about him or his situation, but he was elated to hear your curiosity. "Uh, just computer networking and programing. I mostly just get commissioned to code web pages for businesses and such. Doesn't pay the best but it makes me happier than anything else I could do for a living."

"That's... really interesting, dude. I'm glad you have something you do that makes you happy."

The tiniest of smiles curved the corners of his lips. You didn't have to give a shit about him, especially after last night, but you did so regardless. He resented the way a part of his chest warmed because of it.

"Yeah, thank you." Sebastian brought a hand up to scratch the back of his neck in embarrassment. "So, how's the farming life treating you? Sick of the country already?" 

You snorted. "It's been good. There's ups and downs but there really is something special about knowing where your food comes from and how it's grown and raised."

Sebastian felt spoiled by the blessings of modern technology. He indulged in microwaved meals most of the time and hadn't once considered learning how to make his own food, despite living in the country side. It just seemed like too much work and not enough of a payoff.

"I believe you." Sebastian frowned slightly when he noticed the time; it was going on eight now, surely you needed to get to bed early enough to rise with the sun tomorrow. As if on cue, you yawned. "I better get going, you need your sleep."

"Yeah. Sorry I couldn't be longer. The kid really just wants me awake at all hours of the day already."

It dawned on him then. His mouth blurted out before his brain told him to bite his tongue.

"So you're really going through with this?"

It was an honest question, in his defense. Neither of you were in a situation that screamed financial security. At the end of the day, it was your choice. You were the one bearing the burden of it all. But he struggled to wrap his head around actually keeping it.

"I… guess so," you weakly muttered, meeting his eyes, "are you okay with that?"

It took Sebastian a moment, but he knew the morally correct answer.

"...Yeah. As long as it's what you want, too."

"I guess it's settled then." You couldn't hide your smile, and instantly, Sebastian knew this is what you wanted from the start all along. Knowing you wanted to keep his bastard child made parts of him he didn't even know existed light up. Your kind and gentle nature was too good for the likes of him.

It wasn't going to be easy, but damn he hoped something good would come out of all of this. He couldn't promise you he wouldn't slip up. He couldn't promise you he wouldn't regress to his bad habits. Raising a kid with someone you weren't even in love with was... strange in his eyes. Families always came second to a loving and devoted marriage, not two young adults who had sex once on his childhood bed and refused to acknowledge it.

Sebastian left your house with a portion of the weight on his shoulders relieved. There wasn't denying the still very real, unbelievable amount of stress that kept him awake at night. But he knew you were feeling that too, so neither of you were alone. And now, you two were - at best - on neutral terms. He hadn't the slightest idea of how this was going to work between you two. Sebastian figured he would let you take the reins and he would follow, no matter the choices you made. He may end up being a shitty father figure, but being someone to talk to and get some minor support from was the least he could offer you.

With a final pet to the sleeping cat on your doorstep, Sebastian braced himself to run back home in the rain, mind slightly more at ease for the first time in a very long time. His hopes weren't the highest they could have been, but he had been wrong before. Maybe there was a silver lining hidden somewhere amidst the chaos.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hopefully the slow burn i intended this to be isn't going too fast! if anything, it's more one sided at this point. people don't fall in love over night, even if im so excited to get to the sap and lovey dovey parts already


	4. [ september, week 10]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You have your second appointment at the clinic, and news slowly begins to spread.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW for mention of reproductive organs, pretty standard stuff for a fic involving pregnancy
> 
> okay so, i lied, i DID intend on having chapters be split between perspectives, but this one was running long and i didn't want to add onto it any more than i already had.
> 
> the timeline in stardew is kinda wack. a whole year is like, what, four months? so forgive me if the dates don't exactly line up perfectly to the game. i'm treating each season to be 3 months as it is in the real world. but i'm sure there's inconsistencies somewhere i've missed. plus the different ultrasound milestones are modified to fit the story, but i'm aiming to keep stuff as realistic as possible. (i'm having fun researching stuff okay)
> 
> thanks for waiting so patiently for an update ❤

It had been a month since your world turned upside down. Three weeks to the day, you found yourself a single mother-to-be. Within the next twenty four hours, you had confessed to the father, were met with unmistakable disinterest, only for the man in question to eventually admit his wrongdoings and offer support. Needless to say, it was an intense emotional rollercoaster. And it didn't show signs of slowing down any time soon. You knew this was only the beginning of something bigger than you could even begin to imagine.

Truthfully you weren't sure how to feel about the whole thing. Your feelings changed with the day; sometimes, you were certain you were given something you were capable of handling, while other days you felt you were stuck in a pit, unable to get help. The concept and the permanence of being a parent freaked you out. There wasn't anything you could do to undo the past and forget everything that had happened. Well, there was... but you knew that was a road you weren't willing to go down. The kid couldn't help being conceived by two fuck-ups, and it felt wrong to blame them for something out of their control. 

As you rummaged through your wardrobe for something nicer to wear to the clinic than your dirt-clad overalls, your reflection in the bedside mirror caught your attention. You took a step back and stood there admiring the view for far longer than you intended. You became fixated on the raised bump in your center - growing far too rapidly for your liking - and tried to pose yourself in a way you wouldn't appear any different than normal. Your efforts were in vain. Even the baggy overalls were quickly becoming unable to shield your growing stomach from peeping eyes. A week ago, you would have passed by fine in the outfit you were wearing. But now, having reached the second month of your pregnancy, concealing your bump was going to be an uphill battle. 

Gosh, you were already two months into this? It was impossible to believe, but there the proof was, blatantly obvious now that your eyes pointed it out. You hoped it was one of those things that only you noticed and were overly critical about, and everyone else paid no mind. Your heart sunk knowing eventually you were going to have to break the news to the whole town. Maybe you could hold out for another couple of weeks? After all, you needed time to adjust to this whole "my body is changing and I can barely recognize it and oh yeah I'm going to be a parent" deal. 

Finally focusing back onto changing into something clean, you shoved the thoughts about having to tell anyone to the back of your mind. All you needed to focus on today was tending to your crops and getting to Harvey's clinic on time for your appointment. You already had checked one of those tasks off the list, so it was time to deal with the much more intimidating of the two errands. You decided to change into a modest tee shirt, pairing it with a loose cardigan sweater and pulling it all together with some regular old jeans. Nothing too flashy, just an ordinary, run-of-the-mill outfit. Even if the route you took to the clinic meant passing by the barren bus stop, you weren't feeling particularly fond about being spotted. 

As if the universe decided to torture you just one more time, your appointment so happened to fall on the same morning as Sam's. 

You hadn't noticed him when you first walked in, too focused on checking in and hiding in the waiting room as soon as possible. Thankfully he didn't take notice of you either, as his head was stuck in the game console held in his hands with a death grip. He was just as focused on playing this game as he was when he was getting beat in pool; his brows were so furrowed you swore he'd get wrinkles, and his tongue was sticking out slightly between his teeth. It really was like looking at an overgrown toddler, but it had its charm. You prayed his game was entertaining enough that he wouldn't consider looking up from the cracked screen until Maru called either of you out of the room.

But of course, you jinxed yourself with that one.

The blonde sighed heavily, his game playing disappointing sounding music along with a narrator exclaiming "game over". He ran a hand through his untamed locks and grumbled something you didn't catch. When he eventually looked up, his face burst back into life at the sight of you sitting among the waiting room seats.

"_____! Hey!"

If only you could wrap your cardigan around yourself like a magician's robe and make yourself disappear out of existence. But alas, you were in the real world, and neither magic nor something that was going to get you out of this situation existed.

"Hey, Sam!" You let out a sigh of relief when your friend chose not to come over to you and decided to stay in his spot. "Everything going alright?"

Sam shut off his game with a *clink* of the power button to focus entirely on you. "Yeah! Just here for my annual check-up. What about you though? Abi mentioned she saw you leaving here not too long ago… you're not sick are you?" At the mention of illness, Sam scooted himself further back away from you, just in case you were contagious. His allergies were already cumbersome enough, he didn't need a cold on top of everything else.

"Nah, I'm fine. Just here for a check-up too." It wasn't a lie, so you couldn't beat yourself up later about making things up to everyone again. 

"Huh," Sam cocked his head to the side, bangs shifting over one of his eyes, "Harvey usually doesn't schedule more than one person in a day for annual check-ups, I think. That's weird."

Shit, he was onto you. What other possible thing could you be in a doctor's office for if you weren't sick? You racked your brain for anything to use to cover up your tracks. 

Thankfully that wasn't necessary. Maru's pleasant voice broke the quiet in the waiting room, echoing Sam's name into the air. It was his turn to go back to the exam room, thank goodness. You were stumped on how to get away without being any more suspicious than you already were.

"Oh, whoops! Sorry, _____. I guess I'll catch you around later?" Sam smiled as he turned the corner out of the waiting room, and you hadn't felt such instant relief in your life before.

Your head fell back against the wall with a thud and you slumped in your seat. Maybe he wouldn't think anything of this, and he would forget the interaction happened in the first place. It was wishful thinking, but you had to hold onto any possible hope you could find, no matter how slim.

For the next half hour, you fidgeted restlessly as you waited. The television hanging in the corner of the waiting room showed no signs of life behind its blank screen, and you weren't about to go ask for someone to try and turn it on for you. Besides, it likely had only five or so channels, none of which would hold your interest for very long, if at all. Looking around the room, you took a gander at your surroundings. You figured it was a matter of time before you became a regular visitor, so why not get familiar with the place.

The first time you came here was such a blur in your mind. You couldn't really recall most of what happened before you got hit with the news that you were pregnant. The clinic was on the smaller side, but homey and comforting. You particularly appreciated the wallpaper in the room; it was a deep, royal green, with a pattern of lighter-colored leaves falling endlessly. It was an odd choice of decoration for a medical facility, but it was better than the plain, intensely bright white walls of the rest of the interior. There were also a couple of paintings you could make out on the other side of the clinic, behind the counter. You wondered if Harvey bought them from a store or if someone in town had made them. Leah seemed the creative type of person who would do something like that.

"Alright Sam, thanks for coming in! Feel free to stop by if you need anything!" Maru's far-off voice from the hallway caught your attention.

"Will do!" Sam swung the door into the hallway wide open as he jogged out back into the waiting room. He rapidly turned on his heels and called back, "Say hi to Seb for me!" You heard Maru let out a nervous laugh and half heartedly agree to the task. 

Oh yeah, they were related, weren't they? You had forgotten. You rarely saw them together, and when you did, they didn't seem to like each other too much.

As Sam strode back by you, he sent you off with a familiar grin. He didn't bother questioning you further about why you were at the clinic, much to your relief. You hardly had a chance to say goodbye back before Maru was ushering you to the exam room with a clipboard in hand.

Harvey was seated in his chair flipping through paperwork when Maru announced your arrival. 

"Ah! It's nice to see you again!" His mustache curled upwards as he smiled. "Come, sit down," he rolled his chair over to the end of the exam table and it a pat, "I've got something exciting planned for you." 

As you got yourself as comfortable as you could on the stiff table, Harvey instructed Maru to grab something for him. She was quick to leave the room in search of what he needed, leaving without so much as a nod. "It should be somewhere upstairs," he shouted in the nurse's direction, "I had it stashed away by my bookshelf!" He turned back around to face you and lowered his voice. "I really need to invest in a storage space," he awkwardly admitted.

Maru returned to the room diligently pushing along a portable medical machine of some sort. At the top was what looked like a computer monitor, along with a keyboard that had its own miniature sized monitor in the center. The very bottom of the box-shaped machine had what appeared to be something like a computer tower, with a place to put CDs inside it. Was that…?

"Tada!" Harvey exclaimed. "Our old ultrasound machine. It's not the latest and greatest technology, but it serves its purpose."

You knew that getting ultrasounds was something routine and to be expected when you were pregnant. But to have the machine right in front of you, knowing you were about to see physical proof of the child growing inside of you? There weren't words to describe how you felt.

"We'll have to dust off the cobwebs, so to speak," the doctor chuckled, plugging the machine's cord into the wall, "Last time we used this thing was before Vincent was born."

Maru hovered around Harvey as he pressed a plethora of buttons until the machine whirred to life. You figured she hadn't ever seen one in person before. Her enthusiasm and curiosity was adorable; you had heard from her about her side hobby of working with robots, so getting hands-on experience with the technology must have been a treat for her.

With the ultrasound machine up and running, Maru instructed you to lie back on the table. You hadn't noticed the pillow someone had put down at the head of the table, but you were glad to sink your head into its fluffiness and give your neck a break.

The moment she gently lifted your shirt up to expose your belly, things began to get very, very real for you. Maru noticed your hesitation and quickly brought her hands back to her sides.

"Everything alright, _____?" She hushed, with quite possibly the best bedside manner you'd ever received in your life. 

"Yeah, I'm good," you nodded and rested your hands together on your chest, "Just… nervous." If you were being honest, you were terrified. But even if you admitted it, it's not like she could do anything about it. 

"Okay. Just let me know if you experience any pain or discomfort and we can stop." Maru recited what sounded like a familiar script for her patients. "You shouldn't have any, though. Harvey's just going to put some gel on your stomach and it might be cold. But that's it!"

Her words were soft and kind, and her smile genuine. You could tell she was meant to work caring for people. 

"Alright, cold gel incoming!" Harvey chuckled and reached over to your stomach with a probe in hand. Maru was right - it wasn't painful in any way, but the pressure he had to put on the probe was a different story. Per the doctor's orders, you had to drink a substantial amount of water beforehand so your bladder was full. Apparently it would help visualize your uterus. With the probe digging into your abdomen right where your bladder would be, you cringed and wished there was some easier, less pee-inducing way to do this.

The discomfort was at the back of your mind once Harvey found what he was looking for. On the monitor, you saw it. The tiniest little bean-shaped blob, smack dab in the center. 

That was a baby. That was _your_ baby. 

"There we are! There's your little one." Harvey grinned from ear to ear, just as happy to see the baby as you were. You could make out the vague appearance of their features, just barely recognizable as a tiny human. Harvey pointed out the shape of the head, which was humorously large compared to the rest of their body. Their little arms and legs were just tiny nubs. They were so small, and yet they meant so much to you already.

"But that's not all! Just one moment…" Harvey flipped through a couple different settings on the bottom monitor, leaving you on the edge of your seat. 

If getting to see your baby on the machine was one thing, getting to hear its heartbeat was a whole other ball game. It was faint, and slightly muffled from floating around in there, but it was a heartbeat nonetheless. Harvey's eyes scanned the waveforms of the heartbeat on screen, looking for any abnormalities, which gave you ample time to revel in the fact you were hearing your child's source of life.

You wished Sebastian were here to hear this, and to appreciate the fact his kid inherited his big head, too. The first tears that left you were not of happiness like you expected them to be. Instead, they were mourning. They were lamenting the fact that quite possibly you were the only one going to fully cherish these moments. 

Looking past you, Harvey and Maru shared a mutual look of pity. You were too busy trying to wipe your tears away with your sleeve to notice. 

Maru nudged your shoulder. "Here," she handed you a box of tissues from the counter, "It's okay. I promise."

You wanted to thank her, but through your sniffling you could hardly understand your own words. Hopefully she understood what you meant. As you calmed yourself down, Harvey was busy taking measurements and different vital signs, calling out numbers to Maru as she jotted down on her paper. There didn't appear to be any concern in Harvey's voice about the numbers he was spouting, which eased your nerves. 

"Right, then. You have a wonderful and perfectly healthy baby on your hands, _____! I don't see anything I'm worried about." 

Relief washed over you. Even if Sebastian wasn't there, you could at least sleep at night knowing your baby was in good shape.

"However, I am concerned about one thing." Harvey softly expressed, your heart skipping a beat. He just said nothing was wrong, how could something concern him? He wasn't telling you fast enough. You could hardly catch your breath.

"Would you feel more comfortable if the father was here?" He questioned, wiping the excess gel off of the probe. "I imagine it would make this whole thing less… nervewracking for you."

You weren't sure what to say. Of course it would help if Sebastian was here, but you weren't ready to admit that. Not to yourself, and not to Harvey and Maru. 

"Forgive me for being so intrusive," Harvey continued, "but this is a scary and confusing time for you. I just think it would be in your best interest to have some sort of support system."

You nervously bit your lip. He was right, and you knew it.

"I… think it would. It's just…" you mumbled, wiping off your stomach with the rag Maru handed you, "I don't know if he would come. It's complicated."

Harvey nodded knowingly. He looked as though as he was satisfied with your answer, but there was a glint in his eye that led you to believe he wanted to investigate further. 

"I don't mean to pry, _____, but is there a chance he lives in town? You really deserve to have someone with you through this. I'm sure we could convince him to show up."

Of course they would want to know the specifics. Why wouldn't they? A random stranger moves into your small town and not half a year later they mysteriously get pregnant out of nowhere. There wasn't exactly a laundry list of suspects for the father figure. But Harvey was your doctor, and Maru your nurse. They wanted the best for you, even if it came at the price of your comfort. You sat up on the table, readjusting your shirt, and swallowed your pride.

"He does."

Harvey gave you a sympathetic smile, but Maru remained standing still, expression unchanged. He glanced at her, expecting her to say something comforting as well, but she only anxiously rubbed one of her arms. 

"Is it Sebastian?" Maru interrupted, jumping to cover her mouth with one of her hands and gasped. She shrunk with the realization of her snooping. "I'm so sorry, I-"

"Maru!" Harvey began scolding her, but you cut his impending lecture short.

"No, it's okay. It… it is Sebastian." You answered under your breath, deeply curious as to where she drew her conclusion from. "What made you think that…?"

"Oh… wow. He has been acting strange lately, but I never would have guessed." Maru kept her eyes on her feet, avoiding looking at her superior at all costs. She was sure to get told off for her interference after you left. "That's… really something. Surely you told him?"

You feebly shrugged your shoulders, still in disbelief that someone had already seen this coming. "Yeah. He knows. Just you three know as of right now, actually." 

Harvey cleared his throat. "Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but it's only a matter of time before the town knows. Perhaps it's best you two figure things out before word gets to everyone."

Maru gave a look of doubt, not believing her brother to be capable of such a feat. You tried to ignore the truth in her sentiment.

"Yeah, that's a good idea. Thank you Harvey." 

Maru was quick to apologize once more, finding it more difficult than ever to not question you further. You knew she had the right to be bewildered by your taste in her brother, but if she thought she was going to get any more information, she was deeply mistaken. It wasn't like you weren't already desperately trying to disregard that night, anyway.

"Well, since we're all finished here, let's set up your next appointment, shall we?" Harvey shot up from his chair and meandered over to his calendar, giving it a once over. "The next set of ultrasounds we're going to need are the ones around 15 to 20 weeks. You've got some wiggle room if the farm has you on a busy schedule. Do you have a preference for any particular day, or…?"

You couldn't think of anything in the next few weeks that would be detrimental to miss. The fair was in a handful of days, and you were already prepared for that. You were told the town held a Halloween festival a few weeks following the previous big event, but it hardly seemed imperative to attend. 

"Uh… I guess sometime between the fair and when the Spirit's Eve festival happens. I don't have anything big planned, honestly."

Harvey adjusted his glasses on the bridge of his nose. He flipped through the calendar, searching for an opening. 

"I can have you in here on the 24th. There isn't anyone else coming in that day, so you'd have your privacy."

You were ever grateful the man took that into consideration. Today's adventure of trying to cover your own ass with Sam was exhausting. "That sounds good. I can do that."

Harvey clapped his hands together. "Great! Maru, will you handle sorting out the scheduling on the computer?" Maru startled at the mention of her name, afraid of her inevitable reprimanding. "You're far more knowledgeable about that thing than I could ever be." 

"Yes, of course, sir! I'll get right on it." Maru jumped at the opportunity to exit the room, but not before giving you well wishes as she left, leaving you and Harvey to yourselves.

Harvey excused you from the clinic after you collaborated on a time to schedule your appointment. It was far earlier in the morning than you preferred, but at least you could get back home to the safety of the farm before the rest of the town became too lively. You mentally crossed your fingers in hopes that you could hide your stomach under the baggiest of clothes when the time came, but it didn't feel very hopeful. 

Harvey was right. You and Sebastian really needed to work out what exactly you two were going to do about making the big announcement to everyone. As much as you dreaded it, you looked forward to the relief of not having to be so secretive with the good people of the town. How Sebastian was going to feel about it was a mystery to you, and that's what concerned you the most about it.

Would he even be okay with being publicly involved? He was a private person, and only you, Abigail, and Sam got to witness his real, genuine personality. To imagine him not shying away from having everyone know his secret - that he was the father of your child - was next to impossible. It would be so much easier for him to deny it and continue seeing you confidentially. He at least had the added benefit of not being the one having to carry the damn thing. There was no way you could hide yourself forever.

You supposed there was only one way to find out, and that was to talk to him. Again. For the first time in weeks after he promised to be there for you. You had meant to communicate with him more, but he never made the first effort, and with each passing day it became more difficult to send him a text. You were paranoid that he was lying, and that he didn't want anything to do with you. After all, he wasn't showing any hint of wanting to even be involved besides giving you his number.

But that wasn't fair to you. Harvey said it - you deserved to have someone there for you. The least the man could do was show up to these appointments and feign interest in his child.

You reached into your pocket with shaking hands and opened up Sebastian's contact information. Giving one last exhale of hesitation, your thumbs began moving on their own accord. Your message read:

_"Just got done with my second appointment. Idk if you told anyone else about this. I hope you didn't yet. Harvey and Maru know you're the dad now. Sorry if that's not what you wanted. Guess I just thought you should know."_

Signing your name at the very end of the text, you turned your phone off and set it back into your pocket. It was up to him now. You did your part. If he wanted to be there for you, he would be. If he didn't, you at least had Harvey and Maru for support. It was up to Sebastian to be the grown man he should be and make that decision now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> dude ultrasounds are no joke, i had to get one to have my ovaries checked out and i have never had to pee so badly in my life RIP
> 
> sorry for a lack of seb content, he'll be back next chapter!


	5. [ september-november, week 10-15 ]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sebastian raises everyone's suspicions, and after three strikes, he's out. (With a break from the angst to enjoy the annual fair.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw for slight reference to drinks and drugs, but literally only one sentence. otherwise we're all good
> 
> gosh okay this chapter KILLED me. i struggled so hard with it, for reasons beyond me. maybe because it's so dialogue heavy? i feel like i can't ever "fluff up" dialogue enough like i can with setting up scenes and such. hopefully im not too repetitive or leave things too... blank? 
> 
> does a 5k chapter makes up for the wait? probably not, but im doing my best lol. i was going to add more but it felt unnatural to extend things further. get ready for some sap next chapter!

Sebastian didn't get to read your text until much later in the afternoon - perks of being nocturnal and all. It was about a quarter after three when he eventually rolled out of bed, wiped away the sleep from his sunken eyes, and opened up his messages. In his half-asleep state, he hardly registered any part of your text as actual words; it took a good few re-reads of the message for the words to finally click.

Maru and Harvey knew. _Maru_ knew. 

It was inevitable. Sebastian would be stupid to imagine that medical professionals would investigate into who the father of your kid was. Probably not for any medical benefit, either. It was probably just so they could use his absence against him. 

The man rubbed his eyes until the colors in his vision distorted. Maybe when he opened them, he would look back at your text and realize he misread your words. But no, upon looking a final time at his phone, you indeed had revealed the news. It was plain as day, right there in the text. 

He also had another text, but from someone else this time. Many texts actually. They were from Sam, pestering him and spamming his inbox full of random, unnecessary emojis. He must have been attempting to wake Sebastian up by blowing up his phone. Too bad for Sam - Sebastian almost always had his phone on silent. 

Looking back on it, that probably wasn't a good idea now. You hadn't messaged him before this morning - he had no one to blame for but himself for that - but it was a matter of time until you two needed to communicate more frequently. It was in his best interest to actually be aware of when someone was calling or texting him.

Sebastian read through the strings of emojis Sam had plastered all over his screen, digging for an explanation as to why he was required to wake up. It was hidden behind walls of messages, but about an hour prior, Sam started his nonsense with:

_"where r u? it's after 2! don't tell me ur skipping practice >:("_

"Shit!" Sebastian hissed, his thumbs racing to send his friend a text back. He had completely forgotten about the band practice today. It had been a long night with a nitpicky client who refused to compromise on the design choices Sebastian made. Eventually he gave up bickering back and forth with the client and went to bed, band practice the following afternoon nowhere near the front of his mind.

_"Sorry. Overslept. Be right there"_

In a whirlwind of purple and black, Sebastian threw on his hoodie, shoved his shoes on his feet, and made a b-line for the front door. He didn't slow down when his mom hollered and asked him where he was going, only yelled back that he was late and was going to Sam's house. Robin shook her head as their front door slammed behind her son with an obnoxiously loud bang.

By the time Sebastian hightailed it to his friend's home, he was hunched over, hands gripping his knees and completely out of breath. Jodi gave him a puzzled look when she opened the door for the man, but he paid it no mind. He wasn't a stranger to receiving unwarranted side glances.

Abigail was the first to voice her opinion on his tardiness.

"Dude! It's about time you got your ass over here. We can't do this without you." Abigail groaned, idly clacking her drumsticks together in her lap. 

Sebastian paced over to his keyboard and swiped the beads of sweat that stuck to his forehead. "I'm sorry guys. I had a bad night. Cut me some slack."

Abigail wasn't having it. "You've been acting weird for a while now. What's your deal, man?" 

"Abi-" Sam looked up from strumming his guitar, silently begging Abigail to quit interrogating their friend, but to no avail. The purple-haired woman was relentless.

"No, Sam. We're only like, two months away from our performance." Abigail turned away from Sam and shot a sympathetic look at Sebastian. "If something's up just tell us. Better than leaving us in the dark."

Sebastian chewed at the corner of his lip, holding back some rather colorful words in retaliation. "Nothing's up. Just got a bad client and didn't get much sleep, so I overslept. Big deal."

With a huff, Abigail dropped the subject. Judging by the irritation on her face though, this was not going to be the last time she called Sebastian out for his seemingly odd behavior. He made a mental note for the future to maintain his stress levels to the point it wouldn't become so obvious on the outside.

The rest of practice went relatively uneventful for the most part. There were a handful of times, however, that Sebastian's attention was divided between accurately playing the band's songs and conjuring up a response to you in his mind. He lost himself, caught in a trance as he read your message over and over, trying to grasp what he should respond with.

What exactly should he tell you? "Thanks for telling me that my sister is completely aware I royally screwed up?" Nothing sat well in his head. It wasn't your fault they likely pestered you about it until you told them. But damn, couldn't they have been the slightest bit less nosey? Sebastian's thoughts were cut short as Sam's voice faded back into his attention. 

"Hey, Earth to Seb!" The blonde dramatically waved in front of Sebastian's face, close enough it made him jerk back in his chair. "We're wrapping up. Get off your phone."

Sebastian mumbled a half-assed apology and shoved his phone back into the confines of his back pocket, stuffed behind a pack of cigarettes he was sure to indulge in after this. Returning his fingers to his keyboard, they grazed among the sea of keys, playing a tune he wasn't at all comfortable with yet. Sam had added this track at the last moment during last week's practice, but low and behold, Sebastian had other things keeping him wrapped up in his head. 

It was hours after returning home from practice that Sebastian magically conjured up what to say to you. The message was mediocre at best, but then again, so was he. 

_"Sorry for not getting back to u sooner. Thx for letting me know. Keep me updated?"_

Rubbing his temples, Sebastian figured it was the best he could do at the moment. It was short and sweet and to the point, and it was honest. He wasn't well versed on the whole medical side of pregnancy, so what exactly you needed done and when you were required to show up was a mystery to him. If you were so inclined to want him to be there, surely you would mention it? Hell, he wasn't even sure what he would do if you did invite him. He'd been too young to remember anything from before Maru was born, and he didn't pay attention to when Jodi was pregnant with Vincent. Back then it didn't matter what those mothers were going through. But now, thanks to his poor choices, you were now going through all of this, and mostly alone to boot.

Setting his phone off to the side, screen facing upwards in the impossible chance you decided to send him something back, Sebastian returned to the familiar blue-light of his computer. At least he had work to distract him from the reality that was beginning to close in on him.

* * *

In the blink of an eye, the annual Stardew Valley Fair found its way onto the plaza, bringing all sorts of starry-eyed, irksome tourists with it. Sebastian was forced to wake up at an unholy hour to help his mom set up her carpentry display, a task he normally despised. But this year? He found it infinitely more tolerable, for reasons he wasn't about to admit to anyone else.

Sebastian was skulking around the edge of town - moping around with Sam as was tradition - when he spotted you. You were there, bright and early, beaming so brightly you might as well have been the damn sun. You wore a grin from ear to ear as you stood back to admire your filled out display, obviously pleased with the items you gathered over the season. Sebastian never paid any mind to the various displays when this time of year rolled around - Pierre had a record winning streak, always taking first place and leaving everyone else in the dust. It was rather obnoxious if he was being honest. But with your collection of various high-quality foraging trinkets, some precious minerals from mining journeys, and your most well-nourished crops, you had ample potential to beat Pierre at his own game. 

The sight of you simultaneously lifted his spirits and burned a hole into his stomach. You appeared to be in decent enough shape; the secret you were hiding wasn't glaringly obvious yet, but you didn't look any worse for wear than you did when you first dropped the bomb on him. From the looks of it, your farming career hadn't taken a detrimental blow, either. He couldn't speak for you, of course, but you seemed to be doing… okay. Life was continuing on, despite the world for both of you being flipped upside down. You looked to be managing it better than him, though. Sebastian promised himself he would visit you over there in the plaza. Eventually. He had to get a smoke under his belt before he undertook the daunting task of stepping into the crowd.

Instead of the sweet relief he expected as he flipped open the top lid of his cigarette pack, his fingers met nothing but air. He was fresh out, and at the worst possible time too. Fuck.

"You good?" Sam inquired, cocking his head at the streaks of complaints that left Sebastian's downturned lips. He stood on his tiptoes for a second, attempting to get a glimpse at what the man was so perturbed about. 

"Yeah, just…" Sebastian grunted and shoved the empty box back inside his pocket, "out of smokes." 

Sam gave him a pitiful look, the same one his parents always gave him when they caught him in the act. "Didn't you _just_ buy that pack earlier this month? That's a lot to finish in a week, dude."

"You think I don't know that?" Sebastian spat, temper showing the sparks of a flare. "You sound like everybody else. I'm fine."

Sebastian sharply exhaled through his nose. He caught Sam side-eyeing him and let out a sigh. "Sorry, it's just… it's been a long week."

"Eh, it's cool." Sam gazed at the ground and kicked a small pebble underneath his shoe. "Maybe you just need a good distraction. Besides smoking."

Out of nowhere, Abigail's sing-song voice cheered through the air. Speaking of distractions.

"Hey! Mayor Lewis is about to judge the displays. Figured you guys would wanna go give _____ some of your good luck charm!" She chirped, bubbly at the thought of you finally one-upping her dad. 

Sam turned to Sebastian and nudged his head in the direction of the plaza. "Distraction, right? C'mon."

Sebastian clenched his jaw but reluctantly nodded. He followed Abigail and Sam with a stride nowhere as enthusiastic as the pair in front of him. They didn't stop to look back before they shot after you, standing side by side with you at your impressive showcase. Looking at the three of them, Sebastian almost felt isolated and completely unsolicited. It was the shy but delightful smile you sent his way that drove him forwards to stand amongst you and his friends.

"Hey." He muttered, nowhere near as lively as he anticipated to be. "Uh… nice stuff you got. Looks like it's gonna give everyone a run for their money." Sebastian's eyes drifted towards one of your showcased items; from far away it wasn't impressive, but up close he identified it as none other than a hunk of obsidian. Immediately his face lit up, astounded to see something like it in person. "Damn, is that…?"

"Obsidian?" You answered, grinning slyly. "Sure thing. I was down in the mines and found an interesting looking rock. Took it to Clint and he told me it was a magma geode, though he hadn't seen one in a long time. Guess they're only really far down there." Your face reddened, the attention of the very intrigued and impressed trio flustering you. You glanced away bashfully and focused on your display, dusting some dirt off of a basket full of potatoes. "Anyway, Clint busted it for me, and that obsidian was in there. Didn't want to sell it, but couldn't find a use for it on the farm either. Kept it around just because. I figured why not show it off here, too?"

Sebastian clicked his tongue. "Wow. Only ever saw obsidian ore in the kind of books Maru reads… never seen it in person before." He withheld the urge to reach a hand out for it, yearning to feel the smoothness of the cooled lava under his fingertips.

You chuckled. "Y'know, after this competition's over, you can take it. Like I said, I don't have a use for it one way or another."

Sebastian nervously laughed, unsure of how to accept such a gift. "Nah, I couldn't. If I want one I can go digging for it. You keep it." 

Before you got a chance to shove the prized mineral his way, Mayor Lewis's booming voice got the attention of the town. 

"Alright, everyone! I'll begin judging this year's grange displays shortly. Please give me a few moments, folks."

Sebastian and the rest of the group stood back, allowing the mayor space to walk along and get a good view of the displays. Everyone watching went silent, the anticipation of the mayor's ratings thick in the air. The elder sauntered about, enjoying his stroll as he grunted and nodded to himself. When he finally reached your display, he stopped in his tracks to get the best look at the items you brought in. Sebastian heard you gulp and turned to see you anxiously picking at the skin of your nails. He had to admit, seeing your nervousness over a silly old traditional competition was kind of adorable.

Sebastian nudged your shoulder with a bony elbow, getting you to look up at him. "Good luck. You're gonna be fine." 

Judging by the worried look you returned to him, you didn't share his confidence. But at the very least he tried to get your nerves to settle - nobody could say he didn't. 

After jumping from display to display, the mayor reached his final destination of Willy's rank fish stand. He pinched his nose at the foul odor, making his announcement sound humorously nasally. "Well, after giving these displays a good inspection, I do believe I've found our winner today!" The entire town inhaled in unison as they awaited his final judgment. 

"_____, I have to say, you really outdid yourself this year! Congratulations on winning first place!"

"Thank you so much, Mayor Lewis! I really appreciate it!" You eagerly shook the mayor's hand, voice teetering on the verge of happy tears. Sebastian found himself smiling as you glew with pride.

Abigail and Sam both congratulated you with pats on the back and enthusiastic claps, but Sebastian struggled to do the same. He settled on giving you a thumbs up when you looked up, hoping it got the message across. 

"Thanks, you guys. Couldn't have done it without you." You grinned. Just as quickly as your smile appeared, it vanished as you suddenly remembered something. You whipped around to your display, snatching the obsidian from its container and all but shoved it at Sebastian. "I'm a woman of my words. Take it."

Sebastian stood flabbergasted, hands reflexively reaching to grab the obsidian you nudged at his chest. "Seriously?" He desperately avoided taking it from you, not deeming himself having done anything worthy of being gifted for, but the look on your face wordlessly insisted him. "...Thank you."

Stroking the near void colored ore, he admired the stark contrast of his skin against it. He needed to find an extra special spot in his room to store this bad boy.

Abigail cleared her throat. "I'm gonna go check out some of the arcade games. Gotta beat last year's records," she winked. "Sam, you coming?" 

The blonde sprinted after Abigail, abandoning Sebastian to stand with you by the displays. Sebastian shifted his weight on his feet, awkwardly dancing in place, unsure of what to do with himself. There was something he wanted to ask you, but he choked on the words. He had to give himself a mental pep talk for this.

Sebastian called you closer with a whistle. He swung his head around in all directions, surveying who all was nearby - he had to make sure nobody was around to pry. When the coast was clear, he lowered his voice to a notch just above a whisper.

"So, uh…" he started, palms beginning to sweat around the rock in his hands, "when is the next time you see Harvey?" Hopefully that didn't sound stalkerish. Yoba please let that not sound stalkerish. 

"Oh! You… want to come?" You mumbled. Sebastian nodded his head, hair dramatically swishing with the motion.

"I mean… figured that's what I should do. Only if you're okay with it though." Sebastian hummed.

"I wouldn't mind, but… it's gonna be hard with nobody knowing yet. It's early in the morning but there's still people around in town." You frowned. "Maybe I can go in first and you come around later? Harvey put me down for a day nobody else is in."

Sebastian's stomach twisted. He would give anything for Maru not to be present, but he couldn't shove his sister out of the room when she was your nurse, for fuck's sake. It was pointless anyway, she already was aware of who the father was. He was just going to have to nut up and deal with the consequences of knocking up one of his unmarried, single friends.

"Yeah. You can text me when it's okay to come in. Does that sound like a good idea?" 

"Sounds like a plan to me. You're gonna hate how early it is though." You snickered.

"Oh, please, don't tell me it's horrible-"

"Nine o-clock sharp."

"_____. You're going to kill me."

You threw your head back and cackled. "Shut up, it's not that bad. I'll see you then?"

"Sure thing." Sebastian gave one more glance around to see if anyone poked their nose in on your conversation. "Alright… well. I need to go wrangle up those two." He motioned towards a pair of purple and blonde heads, hollering at each other as they challenged the hulk of a man running the Smashing Stone. "Nice talking to you." 

"Likewise." You replied, stepping over to your display to clean it out. Sebastian began wandering back over to his friends, but caught himself before leaving you completely.

"Oh! Yeah!" He shouted over his shoulder. "Thanks for the rock!"

You snorted and shooed him off. "Goodbye, Sebastian!" 

Things were far from okay, but they were on their way. Besides figuring out how to successfully sneak his way into the clinic without creating suspicion, the two of you faced your next big hurdle: breaking the news to everyone. It was a daunting task that sent waves of dread through Sebastian, but he grounded himself. He had to act oblivious. Like he wasn't battling the fact he was going to be responsible for a whole other living, breathing, entirely dependent human being come less than a year. 

Surely you two could figure this out… right?

* * *

The evening before the dreaded appointment was when shit really and truly hit the fan.

Sebastian, attempting to make amends with his friends for his late arrival to practice earlier that month, invited Abigail and Sam over to his place. No recreational drugs or drinks, just cracking open a good ol' session of Solarian Chronicles. Things went smoothly and without confrontation, despite Sebastian's nerves being at an all-time high.

But alas, things went downhill from the moment the trio began cleaning up for the night.

Towards the end of the campaign, Sam was fidgeting in his seat, obviously uncomfortable. After a curious look from Abigail, he relented. 

"Okay, I love you guys, but I've held my piss for literally this entire game." Abigail wrinkled her nose in mock disgust and Sam snorted at her humorous expression. "I'm gonna go take a leak. I'll help clean up when I'm back."

Without looking up, Abigail called out to the blonde as his hand reached for the doorknob, "Remember to wash your hands, nasty ass!" Sam countered her insult with a swift middle finger.

With Sam out of the room, Abigail and Sebastian began gathering up all of the cards in their decks in silence. But it wasn't the comforting kind of silence Sebastian was used to having - there were clearly some unanswered questions withheld behind curious lips. After sufficiently organizing his deck and gingerly placing it back into the game's box, Sebastian risked a glance at Abigail. She was tediously going through her cards and repeatedly shuffling them, as if avoiding something on her mind by focusing on the cards in front of her instead.

"Abi?" Sebastian questioned, voice so quiet he hardly recognized it. "You okay?"

Abigail suddenly slammed her cards down on the table with an exaggerated huff. "No, not really." Before Sebastian had a chance to ask what was up, Abigail carried on regardless. "You're hiding something."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh bullshit, Sebastian! You haven't been yourself since Sam's birthday." Abigail sat back in her seat, attempting to ground herself before she completely flew off the handle. "You're not slick. Sam told me about how much you've been smoking. And you've never been late to practice before."

Sebastian's eyes drifted towards the wall behind Abigail, vision blurring as they went out of focus. "It's nothing. Just… don't worry about it."

"Of course I'm going to worry, dumbass. You're my friend."

He hated this. Sebastian never knew how to react to positive affirmation very well; it was foreign to him nowadays, and it seemed so forced and unnatural. No matter how much reassurance Abigail could give him, it felt hopeless. There wasn't any way she could possibly understand what he was going through, even if he told her what was going on.

"I know. I just can't talk about it yet." Sebastian's eyes returned to Abigail, who forced her way into his line of sight to get his attention.

"It's been long enough, Seb. Just tell us what's going on." 

Without realizing he met his limit, the string that had been holding Sebastian together suddenly snapped. He was over being asked if he was okay. He was done with the concerned, pitiful looks he was getting. Sebastian knew that if he revealed the truth, he would be met with nothing but judgement. And the worst repercussion of all was that you would get dragged down in the mess he started.

"I said I can't fucking talk about it, Abigail!" Sebastian raised his voice and slammed a pale fist against the wood of his table, holding back a wince from the impact.

Abigail went silent, her face slowly contorting into a scowl, and Sebastian knew he went past the point of no return. The whiny sound of the door creaking open and a concerned Sam interrupted the rapidly growing tension of the room. 

"Uh…" Sam's voice wavered as he awkwardly stood in the open doorway, "did I interrupt something? I can give you two some space."

"No," Abigail croaked without breaking eye contact, "I was just leaving."

"Abigail-" Sebastian started, uncurling his fist and reaching out across the table towards his friend.

"Don't. You didn't want to talk to me." Abigail shot up out of her seat, snatching her bag and haphazardly tossing it over her shoulder. She shoved her way out of Sebastian's reach, meeting Sam at the door to look over her shoulder. "If you're so sure you can handle whatever the hell this is without us, then fine. You're on your own."

With an arm stretched out across the length of the doorway, blocking her exit, Sam refused to move. Abigail swore under her breath and ducked under the taller man's attempt at a blockade, making her way past him and slamming the door shut as she stormed out. It left Sebastian and Sam in the smothering basement, alone with the tense atmosphere the conflict left lingering there.

Sebastian cursed, ramming his fingers through his hair until his nails painfully scraped his scalp. A few moments passed before either of the men moved, let alone even considered speaking to one another. Sam was the unfortunate soul who risked his head getting chewed off and broke the silence.

"I'm not leaving. I know you want me to, but I won't." Sam crossed his arms and leaned back against the bedroom wall, leering at his friend. "I've known you my whole life, Seb. You're gonna huff and puff, but you only do this when you really need help."

Sebastian moaned at his refusal to leave. He wasn't about to have this conversation. "I don't know what you want me to say, Sam."

It was Sam's turn to raise his voice, a sound so foreign it shook Sebastian up inside. "I want you to say what's going on with you, dude! Just… hell, man. We aren't going to hound you about it. We just want to help. You don't have to carry the weight alone anymore."

"Fine," Sebastian's head snapped up, "You really want to know that badly?"

"Yeah, actually, I do. That's why I'm still here." Sam cocked an eyebrow and tightened his arms against his chest, shielding himself from whatever Sebastian was going to throw at him.

"_____'s pregnant. That's it." Sebastian lowered his head in shame, his unmanaged bangs forming a veil over his eyes. "Now you know, so you can stop bothering me about it." 

"Woah, woah, woah." Sam's eyes nearly popped out of his skull, his whole body frozen stiff in shock. "What? How…?"

"Sam, I'm not giving you a rundown on the human reproductive system right now."

"No, smartass, I mean… how did that happen?" Sam dropped his arms to his sides and tiptoed cautiously over until he sat at the table across from Sebastian. " _When_ did that happen?"

"The night we were all over here for your birthday. After you and Abi left, it was just the two of us." Sebastian lowered his heavy head until his chin rested on his arms curled up on the table. "We were both stupidly baked and weren't in our right minds. Needed a fix… or something. I don't know. It'd been a while for both of us."

Sam scratched his neck and propped himself up on one of his elbows. "Huh… who would have thought."

"Not me, that's for sure." Sebastian tilted his head over towards his computer chair, remembering the feeling and warmth of your lips pressed against his. He shoved the thought as far away as possible before he got himself worked up. Damn his hormones. "We made out and one thing led to another and… y'know. Shit happened. That was why she wasn't around. I took it personally, but she just didn't know how to face it when she found out." One of his fingers absentmindedly traced the engraved patterns in the wood of his table.

"That's tough dude… I'm sorry." Sam struggled to find the right words to comfort his friend. "I can't blame you for being so on edge." 

"Yeah, guess so. Doesn't make any of what I said and did okay, though." Sebastian mentally punched himself in the face for having been so unnecessarily cruel to those closest to him. They were only trying to help, and instead of being thankful for their kindness, he practically spat in their faces and told them to fuck off. Like he always did.

"You're right, it doesn't. But I get it. We all say stuff we don't mean when we're upset." Sam agreed, drumming his fingers against the table. "You should probably call Abi and apologize though. I'm sure she'd get it once you told her."

Sebastian grunted some sort of agreement. She probably wouldn't respond to a phone call, knowing her, but he could at least shoot her a text asking for forgiveness after being a dick.

"You know," Sam confided after a brief pause, "Penny and I had a scare a couple months back, actually."

Sebastian's eyebrows shot up towards his forehead. "Really?"

"Seriously! It wasn't the real deal of course, but…" Sam's voice began to fade as he continued, "I get what you're feeling right now. If it helps at all."

It brought comfort to Sebastian when he needed it most, but the bitter portion of his brain was quick to shut down the reassurance. 

"It's just not the same, Sam." Sebastian hid his head in the crook of one of his arms, muffling his voice a tad. "You and Penny… you guys are great with kids. You two could have kids and not even worry about it. I don't have the slightest idea of what to do with them."

Sam frowned, and Sebastian instantly felt horrible, but he was quick to brush it off and replace it with a comforting smile. "Hey, it's not your fault. I'm only good with them because of Vincent. I was older when he was born so I got more time and experience in. You and Maru are so close in age it's hard to relate."

He had a point. But even still, Sam had far more of a supportive family than Sebastian could dream of having. He had his mom, sure, but there was no way Demetrius would let his half-son live down getting a woman he wasn't married to pregnant. Sebastian envied the no doubt extremely supportive relationship Sam had with his mom. Not to mention the fact that he and Penny were _dating_ , and you and Sebastian were just friends. If that was the right word to use. 

After another bout of silence, Sebastian found the strength to say what he had been meaning to for the longest time. 

"Thank you."

Sam shrugged, an arm reaching behind his head as he stretched. "Don't mention it, man. I know you don't like asking for help or anything, but you gotta quit being so stubborn about it. It's easier said than done, but I think if you stopped and looked behind you for a second, you'd realize how many people have got your back."

Sebastian swallowed the heavy lump in his throat. "I'll try to work on it."

Sam shot his friend a convincing thumbs up. "Good! Listen, I gotta get going. But really. If you need anything, you know where to find me."

Sebastian snickered at Sam's ridiculous grin. "1 Willow Lane. Got it." 

"Good man." Sam stood up with a smirk and cracked his back, sounding more reminiscent of a glowstick than a person. "I'll see you around. Remember to talk to Abi."

Sebastian nodded, but instantly remembered something. He shouted out before Sam left the room. "Please don't tell anyone, okay? We… we're not ready yet."

Sam motioned as if he was zipping his mouth shut. Sebastian questioned how good of a seal that was but entrusted his friend to the task of not slipping up. "You got it, chief. See ya!"

Sebastian waved him off, but as soon as his bedroom door shut, the weight of the situation returned to his crumbling shoulders. He picked up the remainder of the game's props and cards off of the table, storing them inside the box and shoving it on top of his bookshelf (conveniently next to the obsidian you gifted him at the fair). Once everything had been cleaned to his liking, Sebastian threw himself into bed and curled up in the comfort of his sheets. He almost succumbed to their enticing warmth but managed to at least give Abigail the apology text he very much owed her after his outburst. 

_"Hey, sorry for yelling at you. I told Sam after you left so you should know too. I don't know how to say it so I'm just ripping the band aid off. _____ is pregnant and it's mine. You can ask Sam about the deets, don't feel like saying everything twice bc it's embarrassing to think about. Don't tell anyone yet please. Sorry again, I hope you understand and I can make it up to you. Gnight"_

It took forever but he did it. Once he hit "send", the deed was finalized. It was over. Two more people knew his secret, and he could only pray that they would keep their lips sealed. It was a matter of time before the town found out, but Sebastian was determined to keep it on the down low for as long as humanly possible. For now, the best he could do was wait.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i may go back and edit some things here and there but i am SO done with reading this, it's gotta gooooo. gotta get out of my google docs. shoo.
> 
> the timeline for this is.. kinda unclear, so apologies for that. the last section of the chapter happens a couple weeks after the fair, so reader is about 15 weeks along at that point. don't overthink it too much, i'm really tired as i'm writing this
> 
> it's a little early, but do we have any guesses for what reader and seb are having? :3c of course yall have a 50/50 shot at getting it right, and they're gonna love their kiddo regardless, but just guessing for funsies.
> 
> also i dont know if solarian chronicles has cards or not, i coulda sworn in sebs heart event there were cards. but im not rewriting that even if there arent cards in that game T____T i claim artistic freedom


	6. [ november, week 15]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sebastian has a heart-to-heart, then joins you at your next appointment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HI HELLO i promise im not abandoning this. it's just near finals and the stress of nearing college graduation (especially in these times) is phenomenal. writing is a nice relief from it, but it also requires time and mental energy i'm short on sometimes.
> 
> anyway!! it's another seb POV, sorry if you were wanting a reader POV :( she'll be back next chapter! also i have a feeling you guys will enjoy this chapter's fluff ❤ it's been long enough.... let seb and the reader have some sap

The piercing sound of shattered glass was a surefire to wake up the whole household. Which would have been completely acceptable if Sebastian had intended on it. But he didn't. 

Sebastian hadn't got much sleep all night. In his fatigue, he managed to sneak into the kitchen in the wee hours to force himself to eat. After his confrontation with Abigail and Sam, he was beyond exhausted, and didn't think twice before napping through dinner that evening. Unfortunately, when he woke up later that night, his stomach grumbled in retaliation, threatening to eat itself if he didn't get some source of nutrition.

"Motherfucker-" he cursed, staring at the plate he dropped on the ground as if that would fix the problem. 

A shrill gasp behind him made him jump. It was his mother - of course it would be, she got up before the sun rose to get an early start on her day. 

"What's going on? Are you okay?" Robin cautiously walked into the kitchen, still in the clothes she wore to bed. She flipped on the lights with a quick flick of the light switch, making Sebastian wince. "And watch your language, mister. I know you didn't learn that from me."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you." Sebastian dropped to his knees, cautiously picking up the shards of plate scattered on the floor. "I'm fine. Just dropped a plate."

Robin sighed. "Shoot, Seb. I just bought that set." She snuck off to grab a broom and pan, tapping the wood handle on Sebastian's shoulder. "Don't use your hands, you're gonna get hurt. What are you doing up this early anyway?"

Sebastian leaned back up and took the broom, tenderly sweeping the glass pieces into the dustpan. "Just fixing breakfast for myself."

"Breakfast at…" she took a gander at the clock on the wall, "five thirty in the morning? That's early even for me, Seb. Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah. Just trying to fix my sleep schedule." He spoke flatly. Sebastian chucked the glass into the trash, taking the liberty of tying the bag to toss it out later. "Sorry for waking you up. And for breaking the plate."

Robin didn't look convinced - she wore her signature 'eyebrow raise of doubt'. As irritated as she was about the broken plate, at least nobody got hurt. That didn't explain why her son's sudden goal in life became waking up at a time the rest of society does.

"Seb," she lowered her voice, tone more serious than Sebastian was prepared to deal with, "is there something you want to talk about?"

"No?" Sebastian turned on his heel, hauling the tied off garbage bag up with both hands. "Everything's fine." He booked it out of the kitchen and into the cramped hallway, almost tripping over his own feet in the process. Robin reached out and snatched Sebastian by the end of his hood, bringing him to a halt. 

"Hold it. You're not doing this again. Turn around." She tugged on his clothing with unexpected strength, forcing him backwards until he stood inches away from his mother. "Talk to me." 

Sebastian was frozen in fear, but complied with minimal hesitation nonetheless. Once she released her grip on his hood, he swallowed hard and sluggishly turned to face her. 

"I think there's something you're hiding from me." Robin continued. 

Fuck. Did Sebastian really for a second expect Maru to keep her big mouth shut about this? Apparently he trusted her too much. Then again, this could have been about something entirely different. Instead of spilling the beans under the assumption that she already knew about you, he played the dumb card. 

"What do you mean? What would I hide from you guys?" He questioned, fingers fidgeting with the strings of his hoodie. Sebastian wasn't always such a pathetic liar, but he was caught off guard and didn't exactly have time to form an escape plan. 

"You tell me. I heard you raise your voice earlier when Abigail and Sam were over."

"We just got into an argument over something stupid. It's no big deal."

"Sebastian. Please." Robin put one hand on his shoulder, nudging his chin to look at her with the other. "For the sake of your old mom, talk to me. So I can sleep at night without worrying about what trouble you've gotten yourself into."

As soon as Sebastian saw the way his mother's emerald-tinted eyes began to cloud over, tears threatening to spill, he lost it. The dark circles underneath them proved that she wasn't making it up when she claimed to be losing sleep over him. He couldn't keep doing this to her… not for any longer. Sebastian cupped the hand holding his chin and pulled it down gently, bringing both his hands together to clasp hers between them. 

"Can we talk about this somewhere else? It's… private." He glanced around behind him, making sure the doors to both his parents' and sister's bedrooms remained untouched. 

Robin nodded wordlessly and allowed Sebastian to guide her into his room, leaving the garbage bag long forgotten in the hallway. The pair both flopped onto his bed, Sebastian curling in on himself at the head of the bed while Robin sat at the opposite end. 

He couldn't find the words to say. It painfully reminded him of when you first admitted you were pregnant to him - the way that no matter how hard you tried, finding a way to phrase it that would lessen the blow was an unachievable task. This must have been how the burden of being in your position back then weighed on you. It felt absolutely horrendous.

"Promise me you won't kick me out or something."

That could have been phrased better, looking back on it, but it was a sincere request.

"Sebby, you know I wouldn't do that to you. You're my son." Despite her promising words, Robin's voice sounded far too pained for the idea to not have crossed her mind at some point.

"I know, it's just… you're not going to like what I'm about to say. I know it." Sebastian leaned back further into the headrest, hiding and protecting himself from the wrath that was surely to follow.

"I won't know unless you tell me." Robin gave an attempt at a reaffirming smile to her son, but he never mirrored it in return.

Sebastian tugged his hoodie up until it partially obscured his mouth. "I've been really on edge for a while and Abigail and Sam finally called me out on it yesterday. That's why we got into it."

"Mmm." Robin hummed. "I didn't hear exactly what was said but I certainly heard Abigail storm out. I didn't hear anything from Sam though."

"Yeah," Sebastian shrugged, "Abigail was just trying to help and I snapped at her. Sam wouldn't budge so I told him what was up. And now I'm… telling you."

Sebastian had no fucking clue how this was going to be received, but what's done was done.

"You know ____? That new farmer that moved in?"

Robin nodded, eyebrows raising in suspicion once more. "I do. She hangs out with you, Abigail, and Sam, right?"

"Yeah, she does. She, um..." Sebastian clenched his eyes shut, unable to break the wall that stood between his mouth and his brain and silenced him. "She and I may have… had a thing."

"So you two are together…?" Robin squinted, incredibly confused as to why this would have stressed him out so much to reveal to her.

"No! We're not together. We're just friends." Sebastian gulped, shoving down the warm feelings the implication of you two being more than friends caused him. "We… had a thing. Physically. One time."

Robin's eyes darted from Sebastian to the sheets of the bed she was currently sitting on, moving her hands off of them and onto her lap, and then back to him again. "Please don't elaborate. I don't need to know the details."

"That's not-" Sebastian grumbled under his breath. "It's not that. I mean it is, but it isn't. It's hard to say."

"Sebastian, if this is what I think it is…"

Shit. Fuck. Every other possible swear he could conjure up.

Sebastian hid his face behind his hands and silently begged for his mom to hear him clearly the very first time. He was not in the mood to repeat this any more. Every time he said it - hell, even when he only thought about it - he made himself nauseous.

"She's… pregnant. And it's mine."

Robin was completely silent, save for a thorough and long winded breath. She took a moment to rub the bridge of her nose as his words processed in her mind. "Why didn't you talk to me earlier, Seb?" 

"Honestly, I thought Maru would tell you as soon as she found out… kinda surprised she didn't." Sebastian uncovered his face but settled on staring at the wood floor rather than his mother. He would rather be looking anywhere else after admitting this to her. His voice lowered to a whisper. "Plus, I really didn't need to give you guys any more reason to be disappointed in me. It was easier if nobody found out."

The bed springs grunted under the shifting weight of Robin as she leaned forwards, placing a delicate hand on Sebastian's knee. She rubbed her thumb against it in a comforting, repetitive motion. "Seb, of course I'm not _ecstatic_ that you made the choices you did… but I wish you felt comfortable enough to tell me."

Sebastian's eyes drifted to his mother's hand, following up the length of her arm until he could look her in the face. He expected a grimace or a look of shame and disappointment at the mistakes he had made. When he reached her gaze, there was indeed a glint of discontent behind her tired eyes. But over time, her face softened - she must have noticed his flinching at her look. 

"I trust you're going to be there for her. That's the most I could ask of you right now." Robin's head turned away from him, her eyes trailing off as she became lost in thought. 

Sebastian's guts churned. Most likely, she was reminiscing. It must have been a huge letdown to see a familiar situation she had found herself in previously play out again, right in front of her. In the kid she had raised to be so much better to boot.

"Of course I am." Sebastian sleepily rubbed his eyes. "She wanted to keep it, so… guess that's what we're doing."

Robin nodded at nothing in particular. "Thank you. You know how I feel about that sort of thing."

Sebastian bit the corner of his lip. He had admitted the big news, but he still felt so uneasy inside. Worst of all, the dread was heightening with each passing moment. 

"I don't wanna be like _him_." Sebastian suddenly choked out, chest tightening at the thought. No matter how much he tried, he could not swallow the pieces of him that wished this whole thing wasn't real. That you would have decided to go through with an abortion. That way he wouldn't have to deal with any of the feelings that he was drowning in, and things could go back to normal. Or as normal as they could be when he fucked one of his best friends and was desperately trying to move on from that.

Robin snapped to attention. "Honey," she leaned over and wrapped her arms around Sebastian, "there's no way you could compare to him. Your heart's too big. And above everything else, you're at her side. That's more than your dad could ever say he did." She squeezed him gently, pressing a light kiss to the top of his head. He hummed at the contact.

"I'm just not sure about any of this, Mom. I don't know." Sebastian softly nudged his head into her chest but left his arms curled at his sides. "I know I should be happier, but I'm not. And that scares me. I want to be happy about this but I can't." He gripped the sheets of his bed with his fists, trying to hold back from losing it completely.

Robin shushed him, running a hand up and down his back. "It's a big shock when you're not expecting it. I know." Noticing the way his whole body began to tense up, she pushed his chest back until they both sat straight up across from each other. Pale, slightly chilled hands cupped the sides of Sebastian's face and brought it closer until their foreheads almost grazed. "But I promise you, when you finally meet that baby, you're gonna wonder how you went your whole life without them. I can't explain it, and it sounds cheesy, but it's true."

Sebastian leaned into the embrace, beginning to sniffle. "I'm sorry… I'm sorry I fucked up." He didn't care if she would get onto him for his foul language. It was the least of his bad habits that she could heckle him about right now.

"Shhh." Robin wiped a tear at the corner of one of his clenched eyes. "You made a mistake. A big one, sure, but you're not a failure. Look at me." Once he gathered the courage to open his eyes, she trailed her hands down to his shoulders. "I am so sorry if I have ever made you feel like you were a burden, or a failure, or anything like that. You're my son and no matter what you do, I will _always_ love you."

Sebastian let out the tiniest of sobs he couldn't hold back. He took a moment to rub away the tears wanting to fall onto his cheeks with the back of his sleeve. "I love you too."

"You're gonna know exactly what I mean when they're finally in your arms. And you're going to do great, even if these circumstances are rough. I'm sure of that."

Sebastian jumped forward and clung onto his mother's arms, resting his head on the top of her shoulder. He finally cracked and let out the feelings he'd withheld all of these weeks. All the frustration, the fear, the confusion. Everything left him in waves that rolled over his trembling body, all while Robin rubbed circles into his back, soothing him like she had done since he was young enough to remember.

After he finally let up, the tears having dried against his cheeks, Sebastian quickly retracted himself from Robin's arms. "Sorry for the snot," he nervously chuckled, "didn't realize I needed that, I guess."

Robin lovingly stroked his cheek with the back of her hand. "It's okay, it's not the first time. I've had you let out all of your bodily fluids on me at some point. A little snot won't hurt anybody." She giggled at Sebastian's crinkled up nose. He didn't want to even begin imagining the horrors of dealing with children and their lack of understanding personal space. "Oh yeah, just you wait. It's gonna happen to you, too. It's karma!" 

Sebastian snorted and jokingly shoved his mother away from him. "Ew, stop! Last time letting you comfort me."

"Oh, hush." Robin snickered. "Have you two told anyone yet?"

Sebastian rubbed the back of his neck. "I think she told Maru and Harvey. But besides Abigail and Sam, that's it. I don't think we're ready yet."

"Probably won't be too long before you don't have a choice anymore, I think. You know how far along she is?"

No, he didn't. He hadn't been involved at all up until this point, but he was trying. Sebastian shrugged his shoulders, puffing as he exhaled. "Not… yet. She hasn't said. But she has an appointment at nine and I'm going to go with her. I'm sure Harvey will know."

Robin's eyes lit up. "That's good, Seb! You'll probably get to see the ultrasound for the first time. That's always exciting." She coaxed herself up and off of the bed, stretching her arms above her head as she stood. "You still feeling breakfast? If I fix something now, you should have time to eat before you leave."

Sebastian's stomach answered for him, gurgling and sounding ready to devour whatever he could fit in his mouth.

Robin smirked. "I'll take that as a yes."

"Thank you." Sebastian muttered under his breath. "For breakfast and… y'know," he motioned in the air at himself with his hands, "all that."

"Of course, Sebby. Don't be afraid to come to me if you need it." Robin smiled. The boards of his floor creaked as she ambled out of the room, shutting the door behind her with care.

All alone in his room, Sebastian rolled over onto his stomach. With an anxious sigh, he checked the time on his phone. 

6:27. He had time to mentally prepare himself for the nervewracking experience that awaited him inside those barren clinic walls. He couldn't decide if he wanted time to slow down so he could catch his breath, or if he needed it to get going so he could get this over with already. Were you this nervous when you first had to see Harvey? Surely it had to be even more intimidating when it was your body getting poked and probed. Sebastian felt silly for panicking when you clearly had more to worry about. 

But then again, he was about to see his child. For real this time. If the reality of the situation hadn't hit him now, it was guaranteed to smack him in the face like a brick later. Sebastian tossed his phone across the bed, its landing making a small *plop*, and put his head face down into the blanket, giving a few good grumbles for emphasis. 

This was going to be one hell of a morning.

* * *

"I can't do this. I'm actually going to throw up."

"Sebastian, you're not going to puke. You're gonna be fine."

Sebastian paced around his room like a caged animal, attempting to panic as quietly as possible to Sam on the other end of the phone call.

"Dude, my sister is going to be there. Do you have _any_ idea how much she's gonna rip into me for this?" Sebastian's sweaty hands almost lost his grip on his phone. "Fuck, Mom knows now, but what about Demetrius? Wait, no, fuck him. I don't care what he thinks-"

"Seb."

"It's not like he can kick me out. I pay rent. Mom is backing me up."

" _Seb._ " 

"But then there's the rest of town. My name doesn't need to be in their mouths. But it's a small town and you know how these people are-"

"Sebastian!"

The mention of his name brought him out of his daze. Sebastian shook his head. "Sorry. Got carried away."

"You kinda did. But look, there's no time for that. You gotta man up and be there for ____!" Sam rambled, voice cut off as his mom apparently called him out for breakfast. "Sorry! I'll be right out! Anyway, dude, it's ten till nine. You better get going! I'll talk to you afterwards, kapeesh?"

Sebastian jerked his phone away from his ear and gulped as he confirmed the time. "Yeah, okay. See you then." With a reluctant tap of the 'end call' button, Sebastian hung up and craned his head back until he was looking at the ceiling. He ran a hand down his face, tugging his bottom eyelids down with them. "Fuck." 

Glancing back at his phone, his fingers found their way into his contacts. He scrolled through the relatively minuscule list until he found your name amongst the rest of them. Sebastian knew the plan was to have him sneak into the clinic shortly after you went in, ensuring no one saw the two of you together. As far as he knew, that plan remained as it was set to begin with. Regardless, he sent you a message before he walked down there. Just in case.

_"Hey. Managed to wake up on time. Lmk when it's safe to come in"_

As he awaited your response, Sebastian decided to go for a quick smoke before he made the perilous adventure to the clinic. It calmed his nerves a tad, helping the edge of his anxiety taper off, but it wasn't enough. Nowadays nothing seemed to be enough to ease his mind. He figured it would only get worse from here on out - might as well invest in saving up for more packs. 

Roughly half an hour after his smoke, his phone screen lit up, your name in the forefront of his messages. 

_"Hey! I'm all set to go. You should be good to come in. See you soon."_

The nausea was quick to resettle in his throat. This was really happening. He stood at the edge of the lake for a couple of pauses, trying to knock his legs into moving. His brain shouted for him to get a move on, but his body wouldn't cooperate. It took some willpower and a handful of attempts, but Sebastian eventually found his feet and meandered down past the Community Center at a snail's pace. When he finally hit the edge of town, up past Pierre's, Sebastian whipped his head in all directions, scouring the horizon for nosey neighbors.

Thankfully the short trip was uneventful and he found himself standing in front of the clinic door like a fool not long after. He glanced up and down the building, closing his eyes and attempting to catch his breath. 

_Breathe. You're gonna be fine._

Sebastian was so on edge by the time he made it to the clinic that the bell chiming on the door as it opened made him nearly jump out of his skin. He stopped dead in his tracks when he finally made it inside the waiting room. His eyes wandered around the interior, not finding a single soul around. Must be in the back, he concluded.

Sebastian's sneakers squeaked on the tile floor as he struggled to make it to the door entering into the hallway. Surely there wasn't any other entrance - this had to be the way he needed to go. All he had to do was push it open and veer off to the room on the left, like he always did during his annual appointments. Nothing new or scary about this at all. No way no how.

Once he stood outside the door leading into the exam room, his heart stopped. More accurately, it was racing a hundred miles a minute, but it might as well have gone into cardiac arrest. At least he was in a medical facility if it did decide to happen. 

His feet were heavy, weighed down by invisible cement blocks. His chest constricted and for a moment he wondered if panic alone could break ribs, but that wasn't realistic. Sebastian wanted nothing more than to tuck tail and run out of the clinic, letting you deal with this on your own. But he made a promise to you and to his mother that he would be there for you. He couldn't betray you both.

Maru must have noticed his shadow at the doorway, considering she inched it opened after Sebastian stood there with his jaw clenched for an unholy amount of time. 

"Ah, you made it." Maru looked Sebastian up and down, not hiding how displeased she was with him by any means. "Come in."

Sebastian ducked into the room and couldn't find what he should be looking at. Harvey was in the corner, fiddling with what he guessed to be the ultrasound machine. Maru stood at the counter, flipping through a stack of medical papers. And there was you, lying on your back on what was probably the most uncomfortable surface known to man. The examination table. 

You gave him a curt, friendly smile when you came in, and nudged your head towards the empty chair at your side. He awkwardly walked over to the side of the table and sat down, not sure what to do with himself quite yet. 

"Hey," you broke the silence, "I'm glad you could make it." 

Sebastian cleared his throat. It felt abnormally tight. "Yeah, of course. How uh…" he twiddled his thumbs in his lap without looking up at you, "how are you feeling?"

"I'm okay. Just really tired and constantly dealing with the munchies. And never for the stuff in my fridge, either." You chuckled, resting an arm protectively over your middle. "What about you? I see you're not dead from waking up this early."

"Pfft. I'm fine." Sebastian grinned at his feet. "You really have no faith in me, huh?"

Harvey interjected, requesting Maru to apply the gel once he got the system running. Sebastian felt self-conscious about looking when she pulled your shirt up. He hadn't seen that much skin of yours since the incident, and even if it was harmless, it still felt uncomfortable to look. He was probably going to have to eventually overcome that embarrassment, considering you weren't even showing yet and you were only going to get bigger.

"Alrighty ladies and gents. Let's find where this baby's hiding this time." Harvey chirped, searching the expanse of your stomach with the ultrasound probe. Sebastian thought it looked just the slightest bit extreme how hard he had to press against it and felt a twinge of guilt. All of a sudden, with a quiet "Aha!", Harvey stopped moving the probe as he found his target. "Here we go! Take a looksee!"

Sebastian didn't know what to expect when he glanced up the machine's screen, but it certainly affected him far more than he ever anticipated.

There it was. That was… most definitely a baby. Inside of you. That was - technically and genetically speaking - part of him, too.

Sebastian's mouth hung open as he cocked his head, getting a better look at the monitor. It didn't look real, but when his eyes shot down to your stomach, up close he could make out a small curve. This was most definitely a real thing. Sebastian found himself feeling every emotion in the book in a matter of seconds.

The first words to leave his mouth were ridiculous.

"Wow. That's… I can't believe it."

You glanced up at him and he heard you chuckle out from under one of your hands. "Yeah, that's how it felt for me, too."

Sebastian sat back in his seat but never looked away from the monitor. He couldn't take his eyes off of it, afraid if he blinked it would all vanish, but it never did. 

"That's not all, though!" Harvey wore a cheeky grin, looking at you knowingly before clicking away at the machine again. 

In seconds a new sound met Sebastian's ears and he knew he was a goner.

He was listening to his kid's heartbeat. There was no pretending this situation wasn't real anymore; he couldn't, not when he was admiring the strong thumping of his baby's heart. Sebastian covered his mouth with one of his hands and looked down at you.

"Did you… get to hear this last time?" He whispered breathlessly behind his fingers.

You didn't tear your eyes away from the screen for a second. "Yeah. It's my favorite part, I think."

Time seemed to slow down after that. Harvey was going off and relaying information that Maru was dutifully jotting down into your papers, but all Sebastian could do was stare at the monitor and avert his eyes when you tried looking up at him. His chest, once feeling constricted and unable to decompress, now filled with warmth. He almost felt like he was glowing, but from the inside. He couldn't quite place words to the emotions he was experiencing - he was cycling through them too quickly to stop and take note of them. But he did know one thing; that this was his future now, boldly standing right in front of him, and the longer he thought about it the less it petrified him.

"Oh, Harvey?" You asked, voice bursting the bubble Sebastian was in. "When would we be able to find out the gender?"

Harvey rubbed his chin in thought. "Typically, we can tell as early as fifteen weeks, which you're currently at. But unfortunately, with how baby's positioned right now it's hard to make out." Harvey removed the probe off of your stomach and tucked it back into its holder on the machine. "We will for sure be able to tell with this next appointment, however!"

"When should that be?" Sebastian piped in, causing all the heads in the room to turn his way. "I just want to know so I can make it."

"After this, our next scans should be around the halfway point of pregnancy. So about twenty weeks!"

Sebastian pulled out his phone, scanning the calendar on it. Five weeks from now, he and the band would be preparing for their first concert. He sighed, which caused Maru to turn over her shoulder and glare into the back of her brother's head. 

"What's up?" You asked meekly. "Are you busy then or something?"

Sebastian shrugged and tucked his phone away. "Nah, it's just cutting it close to our concert. But that's fine." He finally met your gaze and studied the disappointment written all over your face. You tried to tear your eyes away from him, unable to look him in the face, but his hand darted out before he could stop himself. He didn't lace his fingers together with your own, but shakily cupped his hand atop yours. Sebastian was done with beating around the bush and putting other priorities above you and his own child. "No, seriously. This is more important. I promise."

Your head flicked up and Sebastian swore he saw stars in your eyes. It was his turn to look away now - the way his stomach flipped when you smiled and the corners of your eyes crinkled was dangerous.

"Thank you, Seb. That means a lot." You turned to Harvey again, keeping your hand sheltered underneath Sebastian's. "Whenever you can fit us in sounds good. As long as it's a day nobody else is in."

Harvey nodded and trotted over to his reliable calendar on the wall. "I can have you on the twenty ninth of next month. Would that fit both of your schedules?" His eyes bounced between both you and Sebastian. 

"That sounds good to me," Sebastian gently answered, "our concert's a week before that." He flipped his head back to you, slightly disheartened that you finally snuck your hand out from under his, if only to rest it a few inches away. "As long as it's okay on your end." He added.

"I'm perfectly fine with that," you agreed, "thank you Harvey." 

Maru took the hint and skedaddled out of the room, off to put the appointment into the computer system. You sat up and hopped off of the table, caught off guard when Sebastian met you halfway and clumsily helped you down by giving you a hand, helping you find your balance. It was a valiant, heartfelt effort at being somewhat gentlemanly, which was rewarded by another shy smile of yours that shot straight through his chest.

Harvey escorted the two of them out into the waiting room, Sebastian trailing behind you. You made your way to the front desk, diligently signing the paper on the clipboard laying on top. Sebastian tore his eyes away from you when Maru stared him down from behind the computer monitor. 

"I'll see you guys soon!" You rang out, making your way back to the main door. You stopped a few steps away from Sebastian, who stood awkwardly with his hands in his pockets. "Thank you for coming. It was nice." 

"Yeah, totally. Thanks for uh… letting me join." Sebastian's voice faded off. "See you on the…" He mumbled, searching for the right date.

"The twenty ninth?"

"Yes, that. The twenty ninth." He sputtered. "I'll see you then." 

As soon as you waved him off and left the clinic, Maru pushed her seat back and shot up out of it. Sebastian flinched.

"You better be there for her." She mumbled without raising her head Sebastian's way. Maru stepped back from the desk and went to sorting through some of the patient folders on the counter.

"Trust me, I don't plan on going anywhere. And for what it's worth..." Sebastian lowered his head, "Thanks for not snitching to Mom about this."

Maru scoffed indifferently, licking her finger before flipping through each paper. "It's fine. She would have found out eventually." 

Judging by her tone, Maru was still pissed. Sebastian was walking on hot coals here. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier."

Maru forcefully sat the folder in her hand down. After a sigh she continued. "I just thought we were closer than that. I know you can't stand me, but telling me wouldn't have killed you." 

Sebastian was unsure of how to respond, no matter how true her words were. "It's not that. I didn't tell anybody. Not until they had me backed up into a corner."

Harvey's voice off in the distance called for his assistant, to which Maru responded with earnest. "Sorry, I've got to go. Thanks for showing up today. She really could use the backup."

Maru disappeared behind another set of doors. Sebastian found it ironic; she leaves and puts a barrier between them, just in time for him to be a shitty family member and further the divide between him and Maru. He wasn't ever going to repair the bridges he burned down at this rate. Here's hoping he wouldn't be as piss poor of a dad than he was a big brother.

Sebastian returned home in time for lunch before promptly hurling himself back into bed. He laid on his back, an arm thrown over his head, and searched the ceiling for answers as he had done on multiple occasions in the past few months. His heart was torn between being overwhelmingly excited and positively terrified. Each memory of the appointment brought different emotions to the surface; thinking of his confrontation with Maru made him sick to his stomach, but remembering the awe and adoration on your face when he promised to show up again made his stomach turn - for different reasons, this time.

His brain finally chilled out enough to the point he fell back asleep, becoming a drooling mess all over his pillows. When he woke up, flashes of moments in his dreams fogged his brain. Sebastian rarely ever had dreams, or at the very least had them and remembered them for more than a millisecond after he awoke. But despite the odds, his dreams of you came to him in unfinished pieces. 

All he could remember was your presence, followed by some flashbacks to Sam's birthday, but they ended on a note he held onto for far too long. It was a vision of you lying in bed next to him, an arm curled around his side, and the slow rise and fall of your chest as you slept. When he went to reach out for the obvious bump of your stomach, everything disappeared as he rose back into consciousness. It left his chest feeling empty, a hole conveniently shaped like that of your own hand burrowing into his heart.

Sebastian was falling too deep into this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> robin and maru may be a little ooc, im struggling to figure out how to write them at times. maru is understandably upset about sebastian's lack of making her aware, but they'll work it out. i promised a happy ending and i meant that for eeeeeverybody.
> 
> please excuse the poor timeline management skills i suck at math and will adjust the seasons or whatever as needed


	7. [ november, week 16 ] PT.1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You gather the courage to tell your family what's going on, and after it isn't received well, Sebastian pays you a visit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW for crappy parents (not sure if abusive, but certainly up there) and slut-shaming. if you're not comfortable reading, i'll put a TLDR in the end notes! 
> 
> i was too excited about getting back into writing this story to hold off until i was 100% satistied and had proofread it a million times. this is a two parter since this part alone was 4k words and i didn't want to extend it even more! 
> 
> im sorry if this is TOO MUCH background for the reader. i fully intend for them to be as fully inclusive as possible, so you can really picture yourself or whoever in their place. and that's difficult with the more background you put on them! but this bit of info moves the plot along, and no worries - i don't intend on bringing the parents back for more than slight mentions later on.
> 
> so here, enjoy some seb and reader development. i love these two a lot together

Pregnancy was rapidly losing its initial charm.

Between the near nightly battle to finally fall asleep from aching and the fatigue that plagued you during the waking hours, you were exhausted. Farm work was beginning to become more painstaking than it was just weeks prior. By the time you'd wrapped up tending to your crops, your lower back and legs would roll the dice to see who was going to flare up first. It became routine for you to run through your morning chores as quickly as possible, cutting corners if necessary, and returning inside to lounge on the couch and browse the TV while your muscles relaxed. It wasn't anything monumentally painful, but it sure as hell wasn't comfortable. Every resource you stumbled upon online referred to the second trimester as some sort of "golden period", where the unruly side effects of being pregnant took a back seat, and you finally got some pep back into your step. Guess you weren't following the rule book on this one.

\--- TWs apply here, skip to the next break if you need to! ---

Unfortunately, the physical pain paled in comparison to the mental toll.

It took a week after your latest appointment - the one Sebastian rose to the occasion and attended alongside you - for you to fully process the fact you weren't going to be able to hide this much longer. Telling the entire town was a step you dreaded more than anything else. Besides the townspeople, there were some certain figures you also shuddered at the thought of dropping the news to - your family.

Even if you were miles out from the confines of Zuzu, you feared the repercussions that came with informing your parents of your current predicament. No, they couldn't harm you in any way, and wouldn't dream of taking the time out of their day to pay you a visit, but their opinions were sure to be vicious. When they found out your plan to move to Pelican Town in the first place, you were met with nothing but accusatory questions and were almost persuaded to stay put in the city. Thankfully you put your foot down before they attempted to change your fate. Although sometimes you wondered if you stayed back home if things wouldn't have taken the turn they did, even if you didn't want to admit it.

But damn it all, you were an adult. Nobody could decide for you what you were and weren't going to do. And just like you convinced yourself back then, you told yourself you weren't going to allow their narrow minded opinions affect you too deeply.

Except that didn't go too well either.

You added the pair of them into a group chat, allowing you to tell them both simultaneously since it was easier that way. You sat and stared at the screen, writing and rewriting your message over and over until at long last you deemed it satisfactory.

_"I know it's been a while, I'm sorry I haven't talked to you both sooner. My new life out on Grandpa's farm has me busier than ever but you've both been on my mind._ "

That last part was a gross overstatement, but it would appease them.

" _I have some news to tell you. I don't know how you are going to feel about it, but it wouldn't be right to leave you out of it. I'm pregnant._ "

You weren't obligated to give them an explanation. If you lied and claimed you had found a special someone and settled down, more questions would be asked than you had answers for. You prayed they didn't decide this was the best time to call you; typing everything out was a challenge in itself, you weren't comfortable with the idea of verbally confirming what you had told them. 

Overwhelming love and support wasn't what you anticipated receiving, but you had hoped it would have been just a smidgeon better than the judgement you ended up with.

Your dad, being the overbearing fraternal figure he is, was the first to call you and voice his complaints. His grievances with you started with your lack of communication with both of them, but rapidly derailed into berating you for poor choices. You reassured him that there was no need to remind you of the mistakes you had made - you were completely and painfully aware of them already. The cycle continued as it always did; your family jabbed at your weak points, you defended yourself from their harshness, and they took it as a deliberate act of violence against them. If anything good were to come out of this confrontation, it was a perfect reminder of why you moved out as soon as the opportunity struck.

Your mom was quick to rip into you too. She was the instigator who asked about who the father was, and as previously mentioned, you were in no position to lie about your situation. So you didn't. And she didn't appreciate your answer.

"Are you kidding me, ____? I raised a respectable, strong woman. Not some tramp who moves out and sleeps around and gets herself pregnant!" Her gritty voice dug into your ears, your body beginning to shut down in response. "I cannot believe you. You have no idea how much you've disappointed me."

When words failed you, you silently ended the call with trembling hands and threw your phone onto the floor, allowing yourself to finally crack without the audience over the phone listening in. 

\--- end of TWs, proceed onwards ---

There were a lot of emotions you went through, none of them particularly pleasant. Most of all you feared your family deciding to pay you an impromptu visit. You weren't in any shape to defend yourself, and clearly the fact you were carrying another human inside of you didn't spare you from their scorn. Who knows what they would do if they found out who the father was? The thought made you sick.

So you did what you thought was best. You holed yourself up at home, only leaving the farmhouse to get the plants taken care of. You were anything but certain about how long you would be stuck isolated. It didn't matter anyway, considering you were left drained of all the motivation and energy to do more than what was required of you.

That plan lasted… roughly a week. Abigail texted you one evening, asking about if you could make it to the saloon for some much needed billiards therapy. You declined the offer by putting the blame on overworking yourself that day, and if Abigail saw right through it, she didn't show any signs of it. Fast forward maybe half an hour, and a knock on the window behind the couch you had sprawled out on scared you right out of your skin.

Milo, who had previously curled atop the couch and snoozed away, jumped down and landed painfully in your lap in an attempt to hide from the sudden noise. You pried his claws out from the blanket you were laying underneath and glanced up at the window, uncertain as to who on Earth would forego knocking on the door like a normal human and instead scare you shitless by knocking on the window instead. One quick glance at the head of black hair on the other side of the glass confirmed it to be none other than Sebastian. Of course. You pulled the blanket up until it covered your head. Maybe he would get the message and leave.

Or he would knock again, which just so happened to be the route he took.

"____, I'm staring right at you. You're not hiding." He groaned, voice muffled behind the glass confines. "Get up and unlock the door please."

"But _why?_ " You made a pitiful, drawn out whine, eerily reminiscent of an overdramatic teenager. "It's like seven in the evening. Why aren't you with Abigail and Sam?"

"Could be asking you the same thing."

"Did Abigail not tell you I just worked too hard today? Because I told her that." 

"She did, and I don't believe it. I came to make sure you were okay."

You rubbed your eyes and flung the blanket off of yourself with a huff. Sebastian invited himself in with little hesitance once you finally got to unlocking and opening the door for him.

"See? I'm fine." You put your arms up in the air and flopped them back at your sides. "Just tired."

Sebastian looked you up and down nonchalantly. You were in your sleepwear, so it's not like he could point out that you were wearing clean clothes. For all he knew you could have changed out of your overalls. 

"I still don't believe you. I haven't seen you in town since we went to see Harvey. Why're you such a shut-in all of a sudden?"

_Funny words coming from the king of hermits himself_ , you thought. For a moment you considered pointing that observation out, but didn't expect it would be received too well.

"The farm has kept me busy. I'm having to work overtime to make sure I have everything ready before winter hits."

"If you need help, you know there's people in town who can help you. They love stuff like that."

"You know as well as I do that I can't do that. They'd catch on to everything."

"Oh for fucks sake, ____!" Sebastian raised his voice and rubbed his temples. When he noticed the fear in your eyes, he began to deflate. He sighed and slightly curled in on himself, hoping you'd see he meant no harm. "I'm sorry. Can you just let me worry about you?"

You anxiously picked at the skin of your fingers and fumbled to find your voice. "I didn't think you needed to worry about me."

"Of course I do, ____. That's my kid in there, too."

Something boiled inside you. Feelings still aching from being hurt so badly remained in your heart. Before you could hold back, your words turned spiteful. "You didn't care about them when this whole thing started. What's so different now?"

"I know I was shitty but it's not like that anymore. Can't you see I'm _trying_?" Sebastian's posture tightened up again, about to explode on you once more, but he held himself back before the match was lit.

Your eyes fell to the floor between the two of you. You didn't know why that of all things was what fell out of your mouth. It wasn't like it was at all necessary to remind Sebastian of the past, but you were on edge - you had been for the longest now. His presence was unfortunately timed in relation to your temper.

"I'm sorry," you whispered after a pause, "I don't know what's wrong with me. Things have just been… rough. But that's not your fault."

"What's wrong? I told you that you could talk to me." Sebastian's voice lowered, barely audible. You'd never heard him speak so softly before. (Although you would mentally punch yourself later for yearning to hear him talk to you with that much care in his voice even more.)

You sighed. It was impossible to take back what you had just said and pretend everything was fine. "It's a long story."

"I've got time." Sebastian stated matter-of-factly. "Do you… want to talk about it?"

You confirmed his question with a quick nod, biting the inside of your cheek until you tasted metal. Sebastian followed in your footsteps as you accompanied him towards the beat up couch. As soon as your behind hit the cushions, you nabbed the afghan blanket you were cozied up in earlier and didn't hesitate to wrap it around you. It helped you feel somewhat safer in a not-so-predictable situation.

Before you got a chance to speak, Milo emerged from wherever he was hiding and jumped up into your lap without a second thought. With his weight having caught you off guard once again for the second time tonight, you grunted and temporarily forgot the man sitting on the opposite end of the sofa. Sebastian eyed the cat from the corner of his eye, seeming interested in befriending Milo, but unsure if it was okay.

"Oh, yeah. I guess you two haven't met yet, huh? He's friendly, don't worry." You scratched the top of Milo's head between his ears, which he eagerly leaned into. "Milo's really a big baby. He loves hims some good ear scritches."

Sebastian's hand reached out towards Milo, any hesitation having left him once he got the all clear to pet him. Milo's tiny pink nose twitched as he gave the man's hand a good sniff, before promptly headbutting into his open palm. Having given his seal of approval, Milo wedged himself between you and his new found friend, purring in delight from all of the attention being bestowed upon him. 

While Milo distracted Sebastian you took a moment to breathe and catch your thoughts. It was short-lived - within seconds Sebastian caught your eye and he too seemed to remember what he was here for again.

"So, uh…" Sebastian ceased his petting and turned back to you to give his undivided attention. "What's on your mind..?"

You reached over to give Milo some fond belly scratches in Sebastian's place. "After the last appointment I… told my parents the news. It didn't go too well. If you couldn't guess."

Sebastian hummed in acknowledgment. "That's the impression I was getting, yeah. How'd they react?"

You inhaled what felt like all of the oxygen and the room before letting it all out in one huge, heaving sigh. "About as poorly as they could have." Your voice shook as you spoke and you hardly recognized yourself. You sounded so weak, so pitiful. You wanted to knock some sense into yourself and stop showing so much weakness - you refused to accept that your parents' words stung so deeply.

"They aren't happy about it." You continued after a momentary breather. "They've never been the most supportive of my life decisions but this was the most disappointing I've ever been, apparently."

"Yeah… I get that. Trust me." Sebastian stayed quiet, idly messing with a loose string in the holes of his jeans while you calmed yourself down. It was evident he cared and he wasn't brushing you off, just that he lacked any idea of how to comfort someone. He probably hadn't been on the receiving end of comforting for a while now.

The two of you sat in yet another drawn out silence, save for Milo's purring and the television background noise.

"What did they say?" Sebastian questioned after a moment without so much as looking up at you.

You leaned against the back of the couch, tucking yourself inside of the blanket even further. "Nothing I hadn't already thought about myself already. Or that the town won't think once they find out."

Sebastian gave you a brief glimpse, raising his eyebrows in an invitation for you to speak further. You sighed and rolled your head on the top of the couch, deliberately facing away from him.

"Y'know, just… they told me how disappointed in me they were for moving out. Moving out and then sleeping around. Not being responsible. Basically just let me know how much of a whore I've been. All that good stuff."

"Hey, c'mon. Knock that shit off." Sebastian's fingers found their way to your shoulder, lightly squeezing in what he hoped was a calming gesture. "You're not a whore, or whatever the hell they think. You just…" he quickly corrected himself, " _we_ made a mistake. It wasn't just you."

"And for the record," Sebastian brought his hand back to his side, having felt how tense you became under his touch, "coming from someone who's a master of disappointing family members, fuck them. Fuck them and anyone else who has a problem with this. It isn't any of their business."

His affirmation and words of kindness made the floodgates open, turning you into a blubbering, sniffling mess. You weren't _ever_ this emotional, it was beyond embarrassing, but you probably had pregnancy to blame for that. You curled in on yourself and shamelessly used your blanket as a makeshift napkin, making a mental note to wash it later. 

Sebastian's hand went back to awkwardly hovering around you until it settled on the bunch of blanket he assumed to be your arm. "Trust me. The rest of the town may be a bunch of country bumpkins, but they're not terribly ignorant. And if they have something to say to you, you can send them my way. I'll be sure to handle it."

After a brief pause to compose yourself, you moved a hand out from underneath the blanket and laid it atop Sebastian's, mirroring the gesture he had pulled during your last appointment. "Thank you. That means more to me than you know."

Sebastian shrugged indifferently but the warmth in his eyes spoke volumes. "Don't mention it. Wouldn't be the first time I've nearly knocked someone's teeth out. I ain't afraid to do it on your behalf."

"Really?" You retracted your hand back to the safety of the blanket. "Who got you that pissed?"

With your hand having left his, Sebastian occupied himself with giving Milo a hefty dose of chin scratches. "Eh, just that Alex kid. Heard him giving Sam some shit for almost running into him with his skateboard. Told him he was just an easy target with how fat his head is. Hard not to miss." Sebastian chuckled to himself, apparently proud of his witty insult. You couldn't help but snicker at the mental image either.

"'Course he didn't like hearing that and started bad mouthing me instead, but I'll take whatever hits people land on me." Sebastian's voice lowered once more, the playful tone having quickly morphed into something more serious. Whatever thought crossed his mind must have struck a nerve. "Just don't mess with my friends or you're fucked."

Friends. That was the first verbal confirmation of your relationship post-pregnancy reveal that Sebastian had given you. Judging by the expression on his face, he was dead serious about it, too. You couldn't blame the baby for the flutters you felt in your stomach at the sight. That was positively all on you.

"Well, thank you," you met Sebastian's eyes for a flicker of a moment, "for everything. I hope you know how much it means to me."

Another indifferent shrug to mask the flush threatening to paint his cheeks pink. "Eh, it's nothing. Though it's probably a good time to mention that there's a couple other people who uh… found out. I didn't willingly tell them, though." Sebastian's voice wavered. "Just wanted to make that much clear."

His admission made your heart near stop. Sebastian cut off your thoughts before you had a chance to react.

"Abigail and Sam kept noticing me acting weird the past couple of weeks and called me out on it. Sam was the first to find out, then Abi. The morning before your last appointment, Mom ended up finding out, too. As far as I know, all three of them have kept it on the down low for now. Abigail and Sam aren't the type to blab about stuff we tell each other to keep secret."

The last part had you questioning what kinds of mysterious and private information Sebastian had lurking in his past, but it wasn't your business, nor was it your fault he made it sound so interesting. Robin was a grown adult who surely wouldn't thrive off of drama and gossip, so your worries were minimal when it came to her mouthing off to someone about your predicament. The younger pair of friends you weren't so sure of, but Sebastian appeared confident in his friends' abilities to keep quiet, so you gave them the benefit of a doubt.

"Oh. Thanks for giving me a heads up." The familiar sensation of heat creeping up the back of your neck and fogging your cheeks had you all but ripping the blanket off of you and shoving it in your lap. Damn hot flashes. "But… if Abigail knew, why didn't she think it was suspicious that I didn't join you guys?"

"Well, actually, she did. Abi told me once she got your text and threatened to kick my ass if I didn't go check on you. So much feistiness in such a short package." Sebastian snorted under his breath before returning to that serious tone again. "Trust me, they've already got their eyes on me. They're not letting me fuck up more on their watch."

With the way Sebastian's eyes glazed over, unfocused but still deep in thought, there wasn't a doubt in your mind that he honestly and truly regret his past decisions. It took a little convincing on your brain's behalf, but you slowly found yourself on the path to forgiving him.

"That's really sweet of them. I mean, I don't want to see your ass kicked, but…"

"Pfft. Don't lie to yourself. You'd find it amusing." If it weren't for the glint of playfulness you caught out of the corner of his eye, you'd take him for regressing back to his self-pitying and pessimistic ways. But no, he was… play fighting with you. Like he did with Sam and Abigail, and like he even did with you sometimes - back when things were normal and you didn't both have this intense weight on your shoulders. 

Things were getting better. Things _would_ get better. It was such a simple, seemingly meaningless gesture, but it put your mind at ease for the first time in months.

"Oh, quit." You covered your mouth as you giggled to yourself. "You're not _that_ bad."

"Besides, you're coming around." You ever-so-slightly gave a teasing punch to his arm closest to you - if it could be called a punch at all, and not just a halfway meaningful knock of knuckles against him. "You didn't have to come over and check on me but you did. And you came with me to see Harvey. You're not a bad dude, even if I got pissy with you earlier."

Sebastian jokingly grumbled at the impact but chuckled with you nonetheless. He finally let his guard down, seeing as the mood was beginning to de-escalate, and took the time to admire your features now that they were happy again. You found yourself staring into his jet black eyes, losing yourself to the endless depths of them. 

"Thanks," Sebastian broke the silence, "but I'm not doing anything I shouldn't have already been doing. Shouldn't applaud a fish for swimming. Or however it goes."

You puffed in response. A devious thought crossed your mind, and you decided to tease and imitate Sebastian earlier. " _Can you just let me compliment you?_ " You accentuated your point by nudging your elbow into the same arm you had "punched" earlier.

"Oh _shut up_." His words were hardly vicious, seeing as he buried his face in his hands. "Never letting you have anything nice ever again."

"Something in me doubts that." As much as you wanted to block out the rest of the world and keep up the banter, reality was quick to resettle back in. "We should probably think about telling the town now. Like Harvey said. It's not gonna be much longer now."

Sebastian followed your hand as it instinctively cradled your growing middle half. "Yeah," he nodded, "Mom said about the same thing. I just have no clue how to do this."

"Me neither. I just know I don't want to have to tell everyone individually, that's a pain in the rear." You wistfully sighed and propped your elbow up on the arm of the couch. "Maybe there's some way we could tell everyone at once…? I don't know."

Sebastian's eyes scanned the floor for answers. "I mean the Festival of Ice is coming up, and everyone usually attends that. But you…" he paused to find the most appropriate and sensitive wording, "might be too obvious by then. If you catch my drift."

"You're right," when he wasn't looking, you smirked at Sebastian's incessant need to be polite, "it's probably going to have to be seriously soon."

Sebastian wordlessly agreed with a notably long exhale. His head unconsciously tipped from side to side, as if juggling the options he could choose from in his mind. 

What felt like hours passed before Sebastian uttered another word. 

"Alright. I may be onto something."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TLDR - reader's parents are not nice and think poorly of the reader for moving out and especially poorly of the reader getting pregnant. absolutely zero support from their end. sebastian backs the reader up and reassures them that they're not at all the terrible things the parents imply them to be.


	8. [ november, week 16 ] PT.2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With Sebastian's suggestion and some help from good ol' Abigail and Sam, you drop the news to the town.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AT LONG LAST..... i found the motivation to finish this chapter. it's almost 7k, so maybe that works as an apology lol
> 
> this isn't 100% polished and i may go back and change some things but i really, really wanted to get it out to you guys. i'm hoping you'll like it as much as i do
> 
> no TWs apply! (there's a mention of alcohol and some parent-child tension, but nothing horrible)

"Seriously, Sebastian?"

"Do you have any better ideas?"

...No. No you didn't. 

Out of all of the handful of people in this town - hell, even the population of Zuzu - the least likely suspect to pull off a big public announcement would have to be Sebastian. But here he was, throwing the most inane idea onto the table.

In the simplest of terms, Sebastian suggested to pull out a metaphorical soapbox for the two of you to stand on and shout to the rest of the town. Or whoever would be around to hear it. And he wanted to do this at the saloon of all places. Classy.

"Think about it," he urged, "it's the place where most of the town gathers on a nightly basis. You wanted to tell everyone at once, right? We could do it there and rip the band aid off."

He had a valid point. But still, imagining Sebastian pulling it off was absurd at best. You hadn't known him for very long but he didn't seem the type to particularly enjoy being in the spotlight - especially not for such an important matter.

"I don't mean to be rude, but that seems more like an Abigail or Sam thing to do. Not a Sebastian thing." You rested your elbows on your knees, sending a cheeky grin Sebastian's way. "But if you think it'll work, I don't exactly have any other tricks up my sleeve. It's gotta happen eventually."

Sebastian snorted at your comment. "Yeah, yeah. I know it isn't the most imaginable thing for me to do. But what other choice do we have?" 

He straightened up where he sat, having relaxed enough to prop himself against the back of the sofa, an arm haphazardly laid across the top. Instantly you were rushed by a feeling of deja vu at the sight. Your brain flashed back to the first time Abigail had introduced you to the gang, when you first caught Sebastian's eye as he got comfortable cozied up on the sofa in the saloon. 

If only you would have known then what life would be throwing at you in a matter of months.

Without warning, an notably strong wave of nausea rolled over you, and the impending threat of vomiting sent you straight for the porcelain throne. You didn't get a chance to even shut the bathroom door before your clammy hands clenched the sides of the toilet seat, fingers turning white from your grip. Through all of your heaving, you hadn't noticed Sebastian run to your aid until the ringing in your ears passed. The movement of Sebastian approaching the cracked open door caught your attention from the corner of your eye.

"____?" Sebastian's voice calling your name broke you out of your stupor. His voice unmistakably shook towards the end of it. "Everything okay?"

You slumped down until your forehead rested against the seat, its coolness providing much needed relief to your flushed skin. After a moment you caught your breath, but you couldn't be bothered to move; your body was ridiculously exhausted after the sudden interruption and unnecessary adrenaline rush. 

"Yeah, I'm okay. Just pregnant." You laughed weakly and looked up at Sebastian, hoping he hadn't gotten too worried about it. He stare back terrified before he shook it off and rushed to your side. Bony legs kneeled down next to you and he offered you a hand, which you eagerly took. You ended up needing to balance between leaning on him and leaning against the sink as you rose to your feet, but surprisingly, Sebastian didn't complain for an instant.

"Jeez, is it always that bad?" He asked, releasing your hand and resting his own on your mid back to support your weight. Another bout of nausea creeped up your throat, but you focused all your energy into breathing deeply through it, all the while Sebastian hesitantly began rubbing your back. It was a motion so tender and light that you would haven't noticed it if you didn't see his reflection in the bathroom mirror. Despite being feather light, his touches grounded you, keeping you from throwing up again. 

"Eh, it's not so bad as much as it is startling. Though I thought it'd be over by now." You lowered your head and turned the sink on, cupping the cool water in your hands and rinsing your flushed face. "Thank you for helping me out. Sorry for being gross."

Sebastian took the liberty of flushing the toilet real fast - making sure he avoided looking at its contents as he did so - while you dabbed your face dry with a hand towel. "Don't apologize. If anything I should be saying sorry for making you sick."

"Shut up, it isn't your fault." You meandered your way back to the living room, Sebastian pausing to wash his hands. "What were you saying before our kid so kindly decided to interrupt us?" 

You heard Sebastian choke on nothing, apparently caught off guard by the acknowledgment of his being a father. You may have been adjusting to the prospect of parenthood, but Sebastian didn't quite think about it too hard, it looked like.

"Oh, I was uh… just thinking we could get Abigail and Sam to help, too. They probably would be better at it than us," Sebastian cleared his throat, "no offense."

"None taken." You chuckled and situated yourself back on the couch, Milo not having stirred at all in his slumber despite the commotion. The feline was more than used to your visits to the bathroom at this point. "How soon do you think we should do it?"

Sebastian stood awkwardly at the side of the couch, as if expecting you to need to rush back to the bathroom, ready to come to your rescue. He leaned back to glance at the old clock above your kitchen stove. "I mean… it's not too late. I'm sure they're both up. I could call them and tell them to come over."

Your stomach still swirled uneasily, but getting everyone together was a necessary evil. "Sounds good to me. In the meantime you're free to whatever's in the kitchen, if you're hungry."

"With all due respect, ____, I lost my appetite about the same time you did." Sebastian laughed. You took a moment to appreciate his smile - it was a blessing you often took for granted, seeing him in such a way that hardly anyone else got to witness. He must have caught you staring at one point, eyes darting away to the phone he pulled out of his back pocket. "Okay, well, here goes nothing."

Finally after calling Sam's number, Sebastian found his way back to the couch cushions, reaching out to pet Milo with his free hand. The nervewracking sound of the phone dial felt like it went on for ages before Sam picked up.

"Hey," Sebastian started, "you and Abi still at the saloon?"

Sam's voice boomed over the phone, but you couldn't make out any exact words - just noise. You would have to go off of Sebastian's reactions with this one.

"Cool. There's some stuff me and ____ need to talk to you guys about. It can't wait much longer. Would you be able to come over to the farmhouse?" You figured Sam had given a satisfactory answer, seeing how Sebastian's head nodded enthusiastically. "Alright dude. See you soon."

"They're able to run by?" You asked, halfway distracted by the cooking program running on the television. They just had to play that directly after you puked, didn't they? 

Sebastian noticed your disgust at the screen and snatched the remote off of the coffee table, switching the channel and sparing your stomach the sight of food. "Yeah. They should be here in about ten."

You nodded wordlessly and let yourself get absorbed into whatever was playing now, anything but eager to come face to face with Abigail and Sam. They were wonderful friends, the best you could ask for even, but you didn't look forward to all four of you being in the same room, now armed with the knowledge of what _shenanigans_ you and Sebastian had gotten into. Hopefully they didn't make it awkward - you would be doing that enough on your own, you didn't need the added assistance. 

You were greeted by a pair of boisterous knocks at the door, far too excited to have been from Abigail. Sure enough, when Sebastian rose to his feet and opened the door, it was Sam who burst in guns blazing, with Abigail trailing closely behind him.

"____! Congratula-" Sam was cut short by Sebastian slapping a hand to his mouth. The door hadn't even been shut and he was really so enthusiastic enough about this he found it necessary to yell about it?

"Shh! Do you want the whole valley to hear you?" Sebastian reeled his hand back at the slimy sensation of Sam's tongue darting out to lick his palm. He used his jeans to wipe his beloved friend's saliva off his hand. "Ew, quit it! So fucking gross."

"That's what you get for trying to silence me. Anyway," Sam's head turned to you, his attitude bubbly as ever, "congratulations! D'you know what you're having yet?"

"Not yet. We should be finding out at the next appointment." You smiled to yourself at the thought. Sam beamed back with just as much excitement for the two of you.

"You gotta tell us when you find out!" Abigail chimed in from behind Sam, sparing a glance at Sebastian. "If you guys are gonna make that public, that is."

"Let's just worry about one announcement at a time, guys." Sebastian anxiously side eyed you, silently apologizing on his friends' behalf. "That's what tonight's about. ____ and I decided we're gonna drop the news at the Stardrop."

Abigail clapped her hands together. "Oh, so exciting!" 

"You? Talking in front of a crowd?" Sam snickered to himself. "I'll believe it when I see it, Seb."

"Well that's what you guys are for." You pointed your finger at the two friends. "You'll keep both of us from putting it off. Right?"

"I mean, of course, but… how exactly are you gonna drop a bomb like this? Just go stand on the bar and holler out to everyone that you're pregnant?" Sam cupped his hands to his mouth, shouting through an invisible megaphone for emphasis. " _Heeeeyy you guuuuys!_ "

"Shut up." Abigail knocked her friend upside the head with her hand, cutting his impromptu performance of a particular character from "The Goonies" short. "Sloth here has a good point though. How are you guys going to bring this up?"

You and Sebastian glanced at each other without speaking a word, quiet enough for the racket of crickets outside to echo inside the house. 

Abigail shook her head in disappointment. "Neither of you have any clue, do you?"

"Pretty much." Sebastian bluntly stated.

You were inclined to agree. "Yep."

"Oh for crying out loud." Abigail huffed. "I guess we'll just have to do it the way Sam suggested. There's not exactly many icebreakers that you could use."

"As long as you guys got us to keep you in line, I think it'll go just fine!" Sam shot his trademark grin, accentuated with a goofy looking thumbs up. "We won't let you chicken out. Besides, what's the worst that can happen?"

A lot of things, you wished you could answer. Where could you even begin?

"The senior citizens of the town wreaking their aged and dust-filled judgement on us, for one." Sebastian grunted under his breath.

"No," Sam interjected, "they aren't gonna do that. Miss Eveyln is heaven sent, and I don't think anyone takes Alex's ol' grandpop seriously. He's an angry old coot with angry old coot opinions. The rest of the town should be a-okay with it."

"To be fair, the last time someone in town had a baby, it was Sam's mom. And that went over pretty well. Everyone was all over itty bitty Vincent." Abigail added with a reassuring grin. "Plus when Shane brought Jas home to Marnie, she was an instant hit. People love the hell out of babies, for whatever reason. I'm sure you two will be fine."

"Not to mention I'm pretty sure these two would make cute babies," Sam playfully elbowed Abigail, much to Sebastian's dismay. Abigail had to swiftly cover her mouth to keep from exposing her amusement.

"Alright, alright, enough." Sebastian angrily crossed his arms, puffing through his nose like an angry bull. "When can we all get together and do this? We can't keep putting it off."

"Hey, now. Nobody's putting anything off except you, papa bear." Abigail poked Sebastian in the chest, not missing his flustered expression. "But I'm free whenever you guys are. I don't have anything planned for the next couple of days."

"Me neither." Sam chirped. "You guys should do it sooner rather than later. Probably tomorrow, even."

Sebastian practically deflated at the realization of what he was going to have to do, not to mention how soon this feat was to come. He lazily shrugged his shoulders and turned to you for confirmation. "You okay with that?"

Not really. You would much rather prefer crawling into a hole and burying yourself alive over willingly admitting your pregnancy to the entire town. But you had to be okay with it, what other choice were you left with?

"Yeah. Tomorrow evening, then."

"Radical! Let's meet up there around… six? Seven?" Sam tapped his chin.

"Six sounds good. Everyone who is gonna be there should be there by then." Abigail noted.

"Good point. Alright gang, we all together on this one?" Sam threw his hand out between the four of them, expecting the rest of his friends to put their hands on top of his in agreement like some shitty cartoon from your childhood. So of course you and Abigail obliged him.

"I'm as ready as I'm going to be." You mumbled, nodding for Sebastian to join the formation. He rolled his eyes and sighed, but the corner of his lips turned upwards in a smile nonetheless.

With all four of your hands together, you pulled off a cheesy cheer to finalize your plans for the following day. Abigail and Sam took up your offer for some snacks for the road, leaving the farmhouse with some leftover sweets you made thanks to your ravenous cravings. Sebastian stayed around for a few minutes after his friends left, relishing in the return of calmness into the farmhouse. Eventually he too bid farewell, but not before checking that you still were feeling alright in terms of mental and physical reasons both. You assured your friend you were in good health to ease his mind. Sebastian left the farmhouse having given one last head pat to Milo, who only emerged from hiding after your visitors had left.

As you laid yourself in bed that night, you couldn't resist the urge to cradle your stomach as you fell asleep. You gently mumbled to it, regardless of whether or not your voice would carry all the way through for the baby to hear.

"Please don't cause a scene tomorrow, okay? Me and Sebastian need it to be smooth sailing. Don't get any ideas."

Though you hardly meant the criticism at all, and you doubted a fetus was capable of taking something personally, you felt the need to assure them that you did in fact care about them. 

"I love you, kiddo. Your dad loves you too." You paused, allowing the heavy words that just fell out of your mouth settle in your head for a moment. 

"He's just got weird ways of showing it. He'll come around. I promise."

* * *

Five thirty in the evening rolled around far quicker than was comfortable. 

The plan you established with the trio was pretty much crystal clear: show up at the saloon together, grow a pair, and somehow pull the courage to declare to the good people of Pelican Town that their population was expected to grow by one.

That didn't make it any easier to do, though. 

All day you struggled to distract yourself from the bouts of anxiety that hit you one after the other. It was relentless. Your fears started off rational, but they spiraled into illogical territory given enough time. 

What would everyone think? What would Sebastian's family think? You knew what your family thought, and it was anything but positive. Maru had your back, but that didn't guarantee Demetrius and Robin shared her kindness. 

Besides them, what would everyone think? Sebastian had a reputation by association with Abigail and Sam. He was the lone wolf, the rebellious young adult who littered the town with his cigarette butts and used the train cars as canvases for spray painting. While not one to throw very physical fights, you were certain he'd had a history of arguments among the townspeople, young and old. The connotations of him being paired with you - the newcomer to the town, the half-baked farmer who apparently couldn't keep her legs closed - weren't picturesque. 

There was even the idea swimming around that somehow, someone would be disturbed enough as to threaten to kick you out of town, which haunted you. It wasn't reasonable, but no matter how much your brain screamed at you that it wouldn't happen, a piece in the back of your mind wouldn't let the idea go. You would have to go back to the city and face your family, and you were extremely doubtful that Sebastian would throw everything away to move into the city with you and support you. The man could hardly support himself, for fuck's sake - that's why you being pregnant was such an issue.

Anxiety was a cruel mistress.

Thankfully, after a long day's work of tending to crops and working on your preserve jars, the sound of someone knocking at your door was a welcomed distraction.

You wiped the sweat off of your forehead with the back of your sleeve, taking a second to observe the unexpected figure in front of you. (Then again, with how increasingly invested Sebastian was becoming, maybe his presence wasn't all that surprising.)

"You're early."

"And this isn't the saloon, but I'm here." 

"Smartass." You chuffed and leaned against the door, inviting Sebastian inside. "What're you doing over here? You should be hanging around town or something."

"I mean, yeah. But I figured we could walk together if you're up for it." Sebastian scraped the bottom of his shoes against your welcome mat, leaving a couple of mud streaks behind. You couldn't be bothered to care. "It's better than walking alone. Can't be worried if you've got company. Keeps the mind busy and all."

"You're cute if you think either of us can possibly be calm right now." Turning your head around to kitchen clock, you took a gander at the time, silently cursing at the hour. You walked off for a moment to toss your boots on your feet before meeting Sebastian back at the door. "Let's get this show on the road then, shall we?"

Sebastian backed up a few steps to give you ample room to shut your door. It took a couple of good pulls for it to completely surrender and close all the way, but it eventually gave in. An idea crossed your mind to ask Sebastian if his mother was any good at repairing doors, but there was no telling how that woman was going to feel about you after all of this. Best not to ask before tarnishing her impression of you.

The walk to the saloon wasn't nearly long enough. The pair of you barely shared a word together before the intimidating town square came into focus. Huddled underneath one of the light posts stood a scowling Abigail, with no signs of Sam in sight. Once she noticed you, she called you and Sebastian over with a wave.

"Where's Sam?" You questioned. Sebastian's head swiveled, searching in all directions for a hint of your friend's whereabouts. 

"Beats me. But he's never really been the early and prepared type of guy to begin with." Abigail shrugged. "It was his idea to meet up right here at this exact time. Leave it to him to be late for his own plans."

"Wait!" 

Well, speak of the blonde-haired devil.

Sam's figure emerged out of the dark, a panting and sweating mess. "I'm sorry! Mom wouldn't let me leave until _everyone_ finished dinner. And Vincent decided he wasn't feeling the soup she made for dinner, so of course he made a big scene about it." 

Sebastian's eye twitched the longer and longer Sam's rambling dragged on. He cleared his throat to gather everyone's attention. "Right. So… we're all here. Guess we can go in, now."

Sam slapped a heavy hand against Sebastian's back and tossed his arm over his friend's shoulder, pulling him closer. "You're gonna be fine, grumpy gus. It's not gonna be as bad as you think."

Sebastian groaned and shoved Sam's arm off of him with a huff. He wasn't the brightest and perkiest of the bunch, but you could tell he was extremely on edge. After all, the man's only outlet for emotions swerved towards aggression. While Sam and Abigail started for the saloon door, you stayed behind to stick with Sebastian, who gathered himself with what you guessed was a mental pep talk. You didn't get a chance to ask him how he was doing before he kicked himself into gear and made his way towards the saloon as well.

You picked up the rear and were the last person to make the terrifying walk through the saloon door. The music and idle chatter from the voices of its patrons roared in your ears, but you couldn't back out once the door clunked shut behind you. 

"There she is!" Sam's voice called out amongst the sea of noise. "Over here!"

Your eyes traveled where the sound originated from, landing on the trio who had made a home sitting at the bar. With every step towards them, your brain switched to autopilot mode, everything in the background turning to static. After what felt like a blink in time, you found yourself occupying the empty seat next to Sebastian. He didn't look to be in the best shape either. Abigail was scrolling through her phone on your left, Sam sitting next to her and drumming his fingers impatiently on the counter.

You sure as hell hoped Sam had an idea of what he was doing, because at this rate, the possibility of you or Sebastian speaking up was rapidly dying. 

Emily's cheerful voice greeted you, catching you off guard from your musing. "Hey there, farmer! I don't recall ever serving you four up here, but there's a first time for everything, right?" Pearly whites hidden behind a pair of bold red lips shined back at you. "What can I get'cha?"

"Oh, no. I'm good!" You raised your hands up. "Just a water is fine," you answered, "I can't… err… _shouldn't_ be drinking right now." 

Good going on being inconspicuous, genius.

"Is everything alright? Not that it's any of my business! Forgive me." Emily swiveled on her feet to grab an empty glass from the shelves behind her. She set the glass down in front of you, continuing her chatter as she filled it with a pitcher of water. "I may be a barmaid, but I certainly don't encourage heavy drinking. It's a respectable choice to abstain."

For her sake, you prayed Shane and Pam were out of earshot. You weren't about to take a look around and find out - you were too busy formulating a plan and thinking of an excuse for refusing in such an awkward manner. Sebastian was eyeballing you from the corner of his eye with an unreadable expression, and for the first time in a long while you felt intimidated by him again. Whether it was out of concern or if he was irritated by your piss poor lying abilities, you couldn't make out.

"Thanks," you reached for your glass and daintily took a couple of sips, "I just can't afford to let the farm go without care. I can't do that if I spend too much time here, y'know?" 

"Mm, I get that!" Emily replied. "I'm so glad you've gotten that place back up and running. The tastiest food is always homemade and local!"

Pam's nasally voice from the opposite end of the bar called out for Emily, who trotted off to assist her. Your shoulders fell with a sigh of relief, beyond thankful to have ended that conversation.

For the next half hour, the four of you - mostly Sam and Abigail - spent your time chatting away about whatever crossed your minds. Sebastian chimed in occasionally but you found it impossible to do anything but stare into your reflection in your glass.

After a bit of inner self-turmoil, Abigail gently poked your shoulder and you nearly jumped out of your skin. 

"Sorry!" she mumbled, "just making sure you're good. You think you're ready to… you know, do the thing?"

"Is right now really the best time?" You whined, jaw clenching. "I just don't know, Abi. I'm not ready."

Abigail leaned towards you slightly so you could understand her whispers better. "That's the whole thing about this, ____. You're never gonna be ready. But you can't let that get in the way." She straightened back up and shot you finger guns with a click of her tongue. "And that's what me and Sam are here for."

"Wait, Abi-" You reached out for your friend but she was already mumbling into Sam's ear before you could stop her. The blonde nodded as she spoke, her words unintelligible, and he shot up out of his stool.

Sebastian slammed his head into his arms crossed on the counter as soon as he saw Sam's movement. "Oh my _god_." 

"Hey!" Sam raised his voice a few notches, loud enough to turn heads. "I almost forgot! Good people of Pelican Town, would you spare me a moment of your attention, please?"

At his outburst your heart dropped and suddenly every other noise became unbearably loud. Either someone kicked the jukebox off or your brain added that in for dramatic effect.

"I'd just like to take a moment to congratulate ____, and maybe give her a round of well wishes for her good health!" Sam took note of the good amount of tilted heads in the room. A couple of confused murmurs floated around. "What, you guys didn't hear?"

You knew for a fact what was about to follow, but you were powerless to stop it. At least the responsibility of saying the words out loud wasn't in your hands anymore.

"She's pregnant!"

Crickets. Seconds passed without a response from anyone. You forgot how to breathe.

Propped up against the fireplace, Shane's low rumble of a voice spoke up. "Really? Don't start spreading rumors, kid."

"It's not a rumor!" Sam scowled at his coworker. "It's true! Right ____?"

An innumerable amount of eyes burned into the back of your head. Your face burned under all of the attention, but there was only one way to get rid of it.

"It's… it's true. I am." You declared with a gulp. "I'm sorry for not telling everyone sooner, but… you know how it is."

With that, the crowd's silence turned into hoots and hollers. People took turns walking over and congratulating you, clinking their glasses together in a formal toast. It was overwhelmingly positive, despite everything awful your mind had convinced you it was going to be.

Though the general tone was of excitement, there was an elephant in the room. The air had an underlying hint of tension to it, questions begging to be asked that you lacked the answers for. It was Gus himself who got the ball rolling.

The saloon owner made his way over to you, taking his turn at congratulating you. "We haven't had a new youngster in town for a long time. I'm sure Jodi and Marnie's kids will be happy to have a new friend!" As he spoke, he paused to refill your glass without you asking for it.

"Thank you, Gus. I appreciate everyone's kind words, I really do." You snatched your glass and gulped down some water, occupying your mouth with doing something other than talking, which was the last thing you wanted to do right now.

"Of course!" Gus laughed with his belly, eyes crinkled at the corners. "I think they'll be a fine addition to the town. I'll leave you to it then."

As he made his way back to the register, Gus made a point to lower his voice when he began talking to Emily. 

"It is a shame though," you could make out, "I haven't seen her with another fellow. Must be someone from the city."

Sebastian glared daggers at the side of Gus's face, tempting him to keep going until you were sure the other man physically felt it. Emily attempted to divert the conversation, seeing clearly as to where this was going, but Gus didn't catch his cue to stop.

"I just think a real man would be here celebrating with her is all. Letting her deal with it by herself is-"

" _He's not._ " Sebastian growled. You swore you could see the hairs on the back of his neck rise up, like a cornered and defensive dog.

Gus turned on his heel to face the younger man. "I beg your pardon?"

"I said. He's not. I mean…" Sebastian ran a hand through his hair, a nervous tic of his. " _I'm_ not. I'm not letting her deal with it alone."

You reached out for Sebastian's shoulder but he flinched out of your grip. "Seb-"

"Oh," Gus gawked, "I had no idea. I'm sorry for drawing that conclusion, Sebastian. Erm… congratulations to the both of you." The older man took the opportunity and all but darted away from your side of the bar, eagerly tending to other patrons.

"Yeah, whatever. It's fine." He muttered. "Does anybody have a problem with that?" Sebastian swung his head around, scanning the entirety of the saloon for any judgemental faces.

You were finally able to land one of your hands on his upper arm, squeezing reassuringly. Sebastian looked down at you and sighed in relief, relaxing himself until he was slouched in his seat again. "Good. Keep it that way."

Just when you were finally able to put your guard down, all of your cards having been laid out on the table for all to see, trouble found you once more.

You were chitchatting with Abigail and Sam, thanking them for not letting you put the announcement off any longer. You turned back to take a peak at Sebastian to check how he was doing when you heard the saloon door slam shut, his bar stool still swiveling from his body leaving it. The saloon fell quiet for an instant before bursting back into life. 

"Shit." Abigail cursed through her teeth. You looked over at her questioningly. "Do a head count. Seb's parents always come here in the evenings. Robin's over there but Demetrius is gone."

_Fuck._

* * *

He hadn't been smoking for the last couple of days, but leave it to Demetrius to kickstart his habits into motion again. 

Outside of the saloon, Sebastian stood far apart from his step-father, who was crossing his arms and shaking his head dramatically. 

"So that's it? You don't have anything to say for yourself?" Demetrius scolded, squinting his eyes at his step-son's smoking. "You're just going to stand there and shorten your lifespan with those things, right after you tell everyone ____ is having your kid?"

"What the fuck do you want me to do, old man? I knew this shit would happen. At least the rest of the family knows how to keep a secret from you."

Demetrius sighed. The familiar noise made Sebastian want to ball up his fists. But if he did, then Demetrius would see that as a threat, and he knew he didn't stand a chance against him in a fight. 

"Watch your tone with me, boy. I'm not going to let you disrespect me like that."

"I'll give you my respect when you've earned it." Sebastian hissed. "Besides, what do you care? I'm not productive or smart like Maru is. You always lecture everyone about not distracting her from her 'dreams', it's not like you think I have anything going for me. You wouldn't care if I fucked my life up. You'd probably sit back and laugh."

"That's not true Sebastian, and you know it." Demetrius raised his voice, equally meeting Sebastian's volume. "I just expected better of you. I always want you to do your best. But I don't think you did this time."

What the fuck was he implying? Did he think you were a mistake, or a bad influence? That couldn't be more inaccurate. Sebastian felt graced to even be talking to you still, after the stunt he pulled. This was exactly what Sebastian was petrified of - you getting bogged down by his bad reputation. You were too good to be dragged down with the likes of him.

"I get it. I'm a screwup. You don't have to remind me." Sebastian angrily puffed at his cigarette, nose wrinkling in a scowl. "But leave her out of this. She isn't a bad girl. If you've got issues with us then stick it to me."

"That's not what I'm saying, Sebastian." Demetrius rubbed his temples. "I just wish you thought this all through. A baby is a big responsibility."

Oh, here we fucking go. Demetrius and his handy dandy life lessons.

"I know. You don't have to treat me like a kid."

"I won't treat you like a kid when you learn how to stop acting like one. You're about to be a father, for heaven's sake. You've got to get your life together."

"Since when have you known how to be a good father? Maybe to Maru, but sure as shit not me. You're the last person I need to look up to as a role model."

Sebastian finished his cigarette in record time thanks to this confrontation. He was tempted to toss the finished end of it to the stone below his feet, but he didn't want Gus to threaten community service again, and he wasn't going to give Demetrius more justification for lecturing him.

"I just hope you realize how your life is going to change, Sebastian. This is serious. You need to be taking it seriously."

"I don't know where you got the impression that I wasn't taking it seriously. I owned up to it tonight, in front of everybody. A kid wouldn't do that."

Demetrius pinched the bridge of his nose before throwing his hands up in defeat. "Fine. I give up. Clearly you aren't going to listen, so I'm going to stop trying. Just promise me you make the right decisions from now on, alright?"

Sebastian shrugged and waltzed over to the trash can outside the saloon. He gave a tiny lick to the end of his pointer finger and crushed the cigarette stub between it and his thumb. "Sure. Whatever gets you off of my ass." Demetrius responded with some sort of retort, but Sebastian covered it up with the clanking metal racket of him slamming the trash can lid shut.

He had to get away from Demetrius before he did something he'd seriously regret. Sebastian forced himself past his step-father and pushed his way back into the saloon, not caring if the door hit Demetrius's big stupid face.

The sight of you coming into view, sitting next to his mother at the bar, eased his mind more than he'd ever want to admit.

* * *

When Sebastian stormed out, Robin of all people took a second to fill up his empty seat next to you. Noticing how stressed out you were, she delicately placed a hand on your thigh.

"Hey," she hushed, "don't worry. Those two are always going at it. They just bicker until one of them gets tired of the other and they walk away." She sighed wistfully. "I wish they would find a way to mend their relationship but… that's probably wishful thinking. Sebby's never adjusted to him."

Robin's cool and collected voice soothed you beyond belief. It was the epitome of motherly, something you yearned to have had looking after you growing up. "Thanks, Miss Robin. I knew they didn't get along too good but I guess I didn't expect Sebastian to do it in public."

"Oh please, honey. You can just call me 'Robin', no need for formalities." Robin smiled and rested her elbows against the bar counter. "But yes, Sebastian is never one to shy away from speaking his mind when it comes to Demetrius. Even if it makes a whole public scene. At this rate I think they're going to run out of things to butt heads over." You stifled a laugh and agreed with her. 

Out of the blue, Robin took your hand in her one of her own, patting the top of it with the other. "Sebby really does care about both of you. I just want you to know that. Because I know he's the kind of guy who isn't too verbal about his feelings."

You weren't sure how to respond to the physical contact, but you found yourself grinning from ear to ear. "Thank you."

"Of course." Robin let go of you to cup one of her hands against the side of her mouth, blocking her lips out of view. "You didn't hear it from me, but when he got to go to your last appointment with Harvey, he didn't stop talking about it for hours. He was tickled pink to get to see and hear the baby!"

It was a surprising mental image, but you held it close to your heart. 

Robin picked a good time to drop the conversation, as Sebastian came back inside moments later with the meanest mug you'd ever seen on him. Demetrius followed a few paces back, giving plenty of space between the two of them.

"That's my cue to get going." Robin joked. "Congratulations, ____. If you ever need anything, I'm always up the hill and around the corner." She gave a couple of loving pats to your back before hopping out of her stool to join her husband.

Sebastian strode to your side, getting away from Demetrius as quickly as possible. Without beating around the bush, he announced his leaving to Abigail and Sam and told them goodnight. "Do you want me to walk you home? I need to get out of here."

Looking over your shoulder at your friends, you called out one last thanks for them before waving them off. Sebastian took off faster than you could keep up and you barely caught up to him by the time the two of you were outside. 

Sebastian's eyes fogged over, staring out into nothingness as you walked side by side back to the farmhouse. A handful of times, you glanced up at him to read his expression, hoping to find the right words to say that could comfort him, but you never could. The entire walk home was silent until the two of you made it back, Sebastian insisting on hovering around you until you were almost inside the house. 

You would have parted ways then and there, but when Sebastian's feet hit the first porch step, some force unbeknownst to you made you step back outside. 

"Wait! Please." You called out to Sebastian, probably louder than you needed to considering he was only a couple feet away. You couldn't control yourself from reaching out and grabbing his hand, though his was unsurprisingly limp in your own. "Thank you for walking me home. And walking me to the saloon."

Slowly but surely, Sebastian's head turned to face you over his shoulder. Frozen in place, he didn't realize he could turn the rest of his body. If he wanted to pull his hand out of your grip, he wasn't showing it very well. "It's nothing."

"It was a lot to me." 

He shrugged in response, hand going even limper in your grasp. "Your standards are pretty low then, huh?"

"Shut up. They are not." You playfully bickered back. All too quickly the seriousness of the situation returned. "Don't let him get to you too much, okay? A _certain someone_ once told me to not care what other people think. I think you should follow his advice."

Sebastian stood silently, breath coming out in puffs of white clouds in the cold winter air. Flurries began descending onto the valley, a few of the little teases of snow sticking to Sebastian's unkempt hair. 

"Your friend sounds like an idiot… but I'll try. Thank you." Sebastian's adam's apple bobbed as he let out a tiny gulp. You weren't sure what the man was so nervous about until you felt his fingers quickly lace together with your own, hand gently squeezing before immediately letting go. "Good night, ____."

You stood on your porch dumbfounded like a fool, looking at your hand in disbelief until Milo's incessant chirps called you into the kitchen to refill his food bowl.

What just happened…?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> is the slow burn not slow enough??? im just such a sucker for pda i wanna get to the sappy stuff already ;_____;
> 
> i wanted to include that bit from sebs perspective pretty badly, just because it felt smoother than jumping to when seb came back inside of the saloon. and i also haven't written demetrius much and i feel i'm doing him a disservice if i don't! he isn't a bad guy and i don't intend on writing him that way. their relationship will get better
> 
> anyway i hope yall enjoyed! here's a little tease for next chapter: we finally get to find out what seb and reader are having!! >;3c


	9. [ 7/31 ] update (name results)

hey all! it's been a while. i'm regretfully sorry i haven't paid more attention to this fic, it's been sitting around collecting dust unfortunately. but big kid college stuff comes first, and i'm juggling studying for my boards in a couple of days as well as figuring out my moving situation with my partner, so this fic has been on the back burner. y'all deserve an update though! seriously. reading the comments that have been left recently (apologies for not approving them and replying sooner) have really helped me want to get back into this more.

i imagine that after i finish my boards and have an extra month or so before i move, i'll have a chance to bring this sucker back. there may also be some downtime when i'm not actively searching for a job and focusing on settling in that i may use to work on this. it all really just depends on how life goes!

just wanted to give you reassurance that yes, this fic is still in my noggin, and i have full intentions of finishing it. it's just harder now that stardew isn't a huge hyperfixation of mine anymore, and that my attention is on other series. it sounds silly but i'm sure my fellow adhd people can get it, lol. feels like pulling teeth to drag myself away from something i've emotionally invested myself into to focus on something else, no matter how much i love it.

but yeah! all in all thank you for your continued support, even when new chapters are few and far between. i love this story and i'm so excited to share with you guys where it goes, even if it takes months to get there. maybe it makes the whole nine months of waiting feel all the more realistic LMAO

also, as it currently stands, the winners of the naming surveys are as follows:

male - LUCAS  
female - THALIA  
neutral - ASH

see you guys in the next update! stay safe, wear your masks, stay home if at all possible. i hope you're all doing well and taking care of yourselves. 


	10. [ january, week 19-20 ]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The band has their concert, and you and Sebastian finally find out what you're having.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me, posting an update: i look pretty good for a dead bitch  
> you guys: SHE'S ALIVE!  
>   
> just kidding HI i missed you guys and i missed writing. this hasn't been double checked as much as i'd like, but i REALLY wanted to get this chapter out to you guys. you deserve it for your patience. seriously!
> 
> my personal life has been a whirlwind honestly, which killed the want to write at all. thankfully with help from a friend and fellow author, the craving to write has come back in full force. i feel that this is my best chapter yet, and that it shows improvement from my writing even just a couple months ago. hopefully you guys feel the same!
> 
> full disclosure, the date harvey mentioned in the last chapter does not add up at all to the timeline but we're gonna ignore that ok? ok. 
> 
> TW for typical doctor stuff - discussion of pregnancy symptoms, yada yada. nothing graphic!
> 
> other than that, enjoy my pretties 😎

It was just shy of Christmas when you made it to the twenty week mark, which was honestly unbelievable. The tiny little thing growing inside you could apparently be compared to a variety of fruits and vegetables throughout the whole process, and now according to the websites you visited, they were roughly the size of a banana. The food comparison didn't hit you nearly as hard as learning that - if they were to pop out right then and there - you could comfortably cup them in the palm of both hands. Many a times you'd catch yourself absentmindedly gazing off, cupping your hands together and staring at the empty space, willing yourself to imagine what it'd feel like to finally see the living being that's been calling you home for the past five months. 

You were halfway done already. As much as the concept drove you near insane with all sorts of anxiety and stress, bits and pieces of your heart were starting to ache in anticipation of what you had to look forward to. Even when you learned to keep your phone charger in the bathroom for your inevitable vacation stays - either sitting on or facing into the toilet for a couple hours - you still found it in your heart to be excited. 

Better yet, the cheer of the holidays was palpable in every part of town. This was your first winter in Pelican Town after all - considering how festive the townspeople were during the spring, summer, and fall, you came to expect the over-the-top decorations and overlying cheerfulness that the chilly season brought. Nevertheless, it was always a welcomed treat when you journeyed into town and were greeted by holiday lights lining the buildings, garland lovingly hung over the light posts, and perhaps best of all, the noteworthy Christmas tree adorning the center of the plaza. 

What you didn't expect to anticipate so much was the concert that Pelican Town's youngest trio pulled together at the very beginning of the new year.

Sebastian's involvement in the aforementioned musical group was something of a mystery for you - he never really mentioned it, albeit the one time at your last appointment. Sam and Abigail brought up their practice sessions in casual conversation, but as you had come to understand, Sebastian was a reserved and quiet guy. You didn't wish to press into it, fearing it to be too personal for someone who wasn't as close to him as his fellow band members to get involved with. So imagine the surprise you experienced when the reclusive Sebastian openly invited you to come along with the gang for their concert. 

It wasn't a huge deal; everybody in town was technically invited. Whether or not they tagged along was their own decision. However, you weren't prepared for Sebastian, of the other two louder counterparts of the trio, to be the one to nudge you into coming to listen. 

As he had mentioned, the concert fell during the week before your next appointment. You almost felt bad - surely that would be enough of a stressor to ruin anyone's musical abilities. The trio had this concert planned out months in advance, likely prior to you getting knocked up. For you to stand there and soil their plans felt awful. The least you could do was show up and support them.

Thanks to the frigid mornings, the concert was held around noon, giving time for the sun to rise and melt some of the remaining chill away. By the time the bus rolled around to pick everyone in town up, it was comfortable enough for you to toss a hoodie and a pair of jeans on and stay satisfied. 

The ride to the plaza where the gang had set up their stage wasn't particularly eventful, looking past the road sickness the bumpy ride provided you at times. Thankfully Abigail, who was kind enough to offer the empty seat next to her, didn't pay too much mind to it. At one point, she rubbed your back and instructed you to shut your eyes to alleviate the nausea as best you could, only for Sebastian to jump to attention from a row behind you. If you weren't focusing on not trying to share your breakfast with everyone on the bus, you would've found his newfound protectiveness adorable. 

You had dozed off at some point, the ever present fatigue from carrying a whole other person inside you quick to take the opportunity for a nap. Abigail poked at one of your shoulders, gently waking you a not-so-elegant snooze. Looking out the window, you could make out a platform presumably for the band to play from, but in the foreground you made note of the huge glob of slobber you left from drooling against the glass. Ew.

"Ready to rock and roll, boys?" Abigail jumped up, perching on her knees to look back at Sebastian and Sam. In her hands she held a pair of invisible drumsticks, bopping them along the top of the bus seat to a tune only she could hear. 

Sam burst into life at her exclamation, raising his arms up high above his head. "Hell yeah!" 

From a few rows behind, you could hear the distinct shrill of Jodi's shocked gasp fill the air. "Language!" 

Her scolding caused a sea of snickering among all the townspeople on the bus, yourself included. It was cute how someone his age still got tattled on like a child. 

"Sorry, Mom!" he winced, scooting down in his seat until his pointy hair was out of view. "...Hell yeah," he echoed his earlier statement with a whispered scream, flipping his head around to see if anyone caught wind of it. You shot him a thumbs up to reassure him he was out of the dog house. 

"Let's get a move on then," Sebastian grumbled from beside Sam, voice still gruff with sleep. Poor guy was struggling with the change in sleep schedule that his new life required, it looked like. He sat up with a stretch, rolling his neck and groaning at the few satisfying pops it earned him. "Up, blondie," he nudged his knee into Sam's forcing his friend to sit up and give him room to exit the row. The other man protested with a grumble of his own but gave up the fight as soon as it started.

Abigail followed shortly after Sebastian, leaving you at the tail end of the gang again. As you hopped off the bus, narrowly missing a step and falling flat on your face, you made sure to thank Pam for the ride even after your near tumble. The older woman grunted some sort of reply, stuck somewhere between a 'thank you' and 'get on with it', but you shrugged it off.

The snow still littering the ground reflected almost painfully bright from the sun, but once your eyes adjusted, the view was acceptable. It appeared to be in a far off corner of Zuzu City, a place just a little too close for comfort. It didn't hit you how much you had adjusted to country life until the smell of the city and the thickness of its muggy air made you ill. (Then again. Pregnant.)

The whole area was a fenced in block, a bouncer standing guard at the fence to ward off unwanted visitors. What kind of people were in this part of the city that required such protection, you weren't sure, but you weren't about to find out. 

Inside the fence was a concrete platform, roughly a couple feet off the ground, sheltered by a spindly wooden roof. It was far from glamorous and looked worryingly unsteady, but you swallowed your nerves and convinced yourself nobody could get hurt too badly in such a short amount of time. Mother hen instincts were kicking in early, evidently. 

You meandered among the crowd as you waited for the show to start, helping yourself to a cold water from an ice cooler Shane originally brought for his drinks. Surveying the people around you, nearly the whole town popped up to visit. It made your heart warm and fuzzy, knowing Sebastian and his friends were surrounded by such support, even if they didn't completely understand the band's music choice. 

You lost track of time chatting with Maru, not noticing how long the performance was delayed until you heard Abigail on stage call out for Sam. The blonde in question dashed out from the bus, clenching his guitar case to his chest as he ran into the plaza. Abigail leaned down to meet his ear, whatever she was saying obviously not designated for the whole crowd to hear. When you heard Sebastian's name amongst the rest of her question, you apologized to Maru before promptly walking over to the commotion. 

"What's going on?" You questioned, pausing to help Sam lift his guitar onto the stage.

"It's just Seb," Abigail pinched the bridge of her nose, "he's freaking out. I forget he isn't as outgoing as me and Sam. We gotta hurry up and finish setting up. Do you think you could go talk to him?"

Lovely. Dealing with freaking out Sebastians was not exactly your forte. If anything, out of the two of you, he seemed better equipped to deal with other people's freakouts, most notably yours. 

"Of course," you fought back the urge to clench your teeth, "I got it. Where is he?"

Sam nudged his pointy-haired head back in the direction he came running from. "Back behind the bus. He's having a smoke. Avoid the fumes." He pinched his nostrils closed, the stench of cigarette still clinging for dear life onto his shirt, despite only being around his friend for a few moments.

Making a b-line for the man of the hour, Sam shot you a thumbs up for good luck. "He's got a soft spot for you!" 

That… was a comment you were not ready to unpack just yet. So you let it slide.

As sure as the sky is blue, Sebastian was propped against the cold steel of the bus, puffing away at the little remaining cigarette he was holding. Not wanting to startle him and make the situation worse, you cleared your throat to grab his attention.

At the sight of you, your middle half definitely having grown too big to hide anymore, Sebastian forcefully plucked the cig out from between his teeth, stomping it to the ground and waving away the smoke still floating in the air. "Hold on. Sorry."

Giving him space, you stood back as Sebastian cleared the air to a level he felt comfortable sharing with you. Even despite being in the middle of an attack, he still stopped to consider you and your condition. It was always the little things with him. 

Sebastian heaved out a huge sigh. "They send you to come fetch me?" 

"'Fetch' isn't the word I'd use. Maybe 'coax out like a feral cat'. But sure," you lightly joked, pleased to see the tiniest of grins on the man's face, "they sent me out to get you."

"Right," he groaned, leaning his head back until it painfully _*klonked*_ against the wall of the bus. "Well, you can go back to them. 'm fine." 

That was anything but convincing.

"You don't seem fine. What's got you worked up?" You tiptoed over, small steps giving Sebastian room to tuck tail and run from confrontation if need be. You figured out very quickly that he only got worse if he felt cornered in any situation.

"It's nothing. Just pre-show jitters," he shrugged, head lolling down to gaze at the cigarette crushed under his shoe. "Though I gotta say, they aren't usually this bad."

You nodded knowingly. The stress of everything going on in life was enough to drive you loony; there was no telling how Sebastian was taking it in addition to worrying about disappointing his closest (and only) friends.

"Would talking help?" you finally reached his side, keeping your hands to yourself for the time being, "Or do you just need someone to shove you on stage?" 

He chuckled, a low rumble that reverberated in your chest with how close he was. "Ain't nothing to talk about. I just need to get on with it." 

"Only one thing to do then," you chuckled and looped your arm in his, tugging at him until he moved from his spot, "let's go, rockstar."

His eyes widened at the sudden force pulling him to move. "Alright, alright, don't get your panties twisted," he huffed, letting himself get dragged by your feisty self. When the pair of you reached the entrance to the plaza, your arms did an awkward dance of attempting to unwind themselves from each other. Smooth.

You stopped Sebastian a few steps short from inside, tugging at his hood. "Hey, you're gonna do good. Don't worry." He helped you out and talked you down at the fair those months ago - in this way, you could attempt at returning the favor. By all means, it appeared to work, Sebastian sending a genuine smile back your way before trudging forwards into the crowd.

You could get used to seeing that view.

\---

Sebastian's nerves were minimally compromised by your pep talk and positive attitude, but getting to see you pleased with your work made it worth the while.

From the view of the platform, the swarm of eyes pointing directly at him threatened to pierce the calm and collected facade he was putting up. He'd never get used to it. He loved music, and he loved performing, but fuck, if he could do it with his eyes shut so he could forget the fact that people were watching him and waiting for him to screw up, he would take the offer up in a heartbeat.

But if he did that, he wouldn't be able to see you. 

He wouldn't be able to admire the way your eyes brightened up as Sam's voice echoed through the microphone, announcing the show finally beginning. He wouldn't be able to smirk to himself at your reaction to Abigail's intense drum routine. He wouldn't be able to lose himself in the way you idly found your rhythm to the songs - his songs - and the way you swayed back and forth without a care in the world. 

And he definitely wouldn't have been able to see the look you gave him, and him alone, when you smiled so hard your eyes crinkled and he swore you glew. 

Your hands cradled the side of your stomach, and for a brief moment Sebastian's fingers lost their grip on his keys, worrying something was wrong. But with the way your smile never wavered, he knew everything was okay.

Everything was perfect and as it should be.

\---

You felt it. In the middle of the concert, smack dab in the middle of the crowd, you felt your baby kick for the first time.

It was the tiniest of flutters, something akin to what felt like gas, but you knew better. You poked a finger at the spot where you first felt it, and low and behold, something poked back. It was foreign and would've grossed you out if it wasn't your own body, but it was. And it was your baby, too.

You had no idea what stupid face you were making when you gazed up in wonder at Sebastian, but it must've been enough to knock his socks off. He stumbled a bit, a key or two sounding off note, but you'd apologize for it later. Right now, all you wanted to do was somehow tell him telepathically, ' _look, it's our baby, I can feel them, they're real._ " 

You rode the high of the remaining evening away, enjoying every second of the band's numbers. They were hiding this talent from you all along? Never again. You demanded to be included in their roadtrips when they inevitably struck gold. 

The sun was setting by the time the final song was wrapped up, and all three of your friends on stage wore the biggest, most satisfied grins you'd ever witnessed before - it was a good look on them. You didn't dare hold back in joining them in their glee. Sam spouted out a rapidfire 'thank you' speech to the audience, as if he was announcing to a packed auditorium and not just a handful of country bumpkins. It felt good to see him so pleased with himself and his friends. 

With that, the rest of the townsfolk made their way back to the bus, giving the band time to pack all of their stuff away in the space underneath it. You sprung over to help, insisting on at least carrying something back. 

"Nope," Sebastian cut you off, "you're not carrying anything. Go find a seat."

Even when you playfully whined, he never relented. "I'm serious. You're pregnant. Don't you guys have weight restrictions?" 

Sam and Abigail bit their tongues, dead set on not interrupting the show playing out in front of them.

"Seb, carrying a stool isn't going to hurt me or the baby," you puffed, "I just wanna help out."

"You can help out by saving the four of us a spot on the bus."

"You're impossible. At least let me carry the mic stand. It's what, five pounds? Six?"

"I may be impossible, but you're impossibly stubborn," he groaned, passing off his folded up keyboard down to Sam from the stage. "Fine. Suit yourself, woman. You're worse than Abi, I swear."

Success. 

Sebastian took a second to fold up the mic stand, carefully wrapping the cord around its middle to make sure nobody (you) would trip on it. Happy with his precautions, he handed you the stand, unable to hold back a stuttered laugh at your attempt to be helpful. 

When everything was fully packed up and ready to go, all four of you made your way back to the bus, Abigail and Sam leading the way as always. Being first in line, they found their seats first. Despite the earlier seating arrangement on the ride to the city, they decided to flip things up on you. That was when you _knew_ they were up to no good.

Abigail and Sam happily settled themselves together, leaving no room for a middle party. You were forced to share a seat with Sebastian, who seemed just as uneasy with the situation as you were. You gave him the liberty of the window seat, unwilling to embarrass yourself by drooling on it again. He didn't fight you on it - the window seat was always better, and it was every man for himself when it came to calling window seat.

For the majority of the ride, you couldn't relax enough to doze off, no matter how completely exhausted you were. You caught yourself nodding off more than once, startling when the bus hit a rock in the road and jumped. After the third time though, Sebastian spoke up.

"Dude," he patted the shoulder closest to you, nudging his head down at it, "just rest your head. Watching you is killing my neck."

Sleep still running through your system, you couldn't muster up the strength to deny his offer. Instantly your head landed on his shoulder, forehead bumping against the bony protrusion, for which he was quick to apologize for. You nuzzled into him, too tired to give a rat's ass about how desperate you appeared. Sebastian didn't mind - the whole time, he gazed out into the expanse outside the window, resting his head against the back of the seat, watching the rest of the world go by.

"Oh yeah, Sebastian?" you murmured, voice slurring with drowsiness. He made a soft 'mmm' to acknowledge you. 

"I think they're gonna be a musician one day."

One of Sebastian's eyes shot open, not entirely willing to give up napping just yet. "What makes you say that?"

"Well, when you on were stage, during one of the songs I finally felt them kick. I think they heard the music and liked it."

Sebastian moved down to look at you, face more surprised than you'd ever seen before. "R-really?" his voice cracked, and he hid his face away from you before clearing his throat. "They could've also hated it and were saying 'ow, make them shut up'." 

You tsked, glancing down at your belly. "Whatever you say. I think they liked it."

Sebastian nodded back off, the adrenaline of the concert wearing off as fatigue settled in his bones.

"Do you think I can feel it?" he whispered, voice full of the curiosity his face was hiding.

"I think it's still too early. I could barely feel it myself," you ran a hand along your stomach, willing the baby to give another kick and put on a show.

"Alright, well, I call dibs on getting to feel it first. Don't let Sam or Abi feel it, it'll go to their heads." 

You nudged your cheek back against his shoulder, grinning into the soft fleece of his hoodie. "Note taken."

\---

"Psst."

"Sam, shut up. I'm trying to sleep."

"I know but listen if you don't turn around right now I will never forgive you."

"What the hell is so important you have to interrupt my nap?"

"If I say it I'll jinx it. Just listen to me. Look behind us."

"Fuck, fine."

A pair of blonde and purple heads peaked out above the top of the bus seat, instantly ducking down back into the safety of hiding when they saw it.

You fell asleep on Sebastian. You were resting your head on Sebastian's shoulder. He fell asleep on you. He was resting his chin on your head.

"Get your phone get your phone get your phone-" Sam incessantly slapped Abigail's shoulder, effectively getting in the way of what he wanted.

"Quit it," Abigail slapped his hand back, the noise it made echoing in the quiet bus. They both looked up over the edge of the seat again to see if it had woken either of you. Much to their liking, neither you nor Sebastian moved a muscle.

"Okay, shut up for five seconds so they don't wake up," she positioned her phone until just the tippy top was exposed, camera angled just right for you and Sebastian to be in focus. 

The camera shutter sound went off, and Abigail and Sam's blood ran cold. Another speedy glance at the two of you confirmed that, once again, you were too busy off in dreamland to notice the noise.

Sam turned to Abigail, hair whipping her in the face. "Dumbass, why didn't you have your phone on silent?"

"Fuck you, at least I got it," Abigail tilted the screen towards him, the shot perfectly clear. "I'll text you it. But hush hush. Seb would kill us if he found out."

"Heh, yeah he would. But that's half the fun anyway."

* * *

The morning of your twenty week check-up - perhaps the most invigorating one yet - just had to be one of the chilliest, snowiest mornings of the season so far. As you briskly made your way to the clinic, fallen snow crunching under the weight of your boots, you came to realize how deathly unprepared you were for the icy talons of how low the temperature dropped in the valley.

You weren't the only person to have that realization though. Sure enough, awkwardly standing around the clinic entrance despite the increasingly heavy snowfall, Sebastian had to cover up a snicker underneath the scarf loosely draped around his neck.

"City slicker didn't pack enough cold clothes, huh?" he chortled when you gave back a grim expression, a puff of laughter frosting in the air.

"Shut up." You huffed, unable to stay irritated for too long with him. "You could've gone inside, you know."

Sebastian shrugged with a lazy roll of his shoulders. "Then I wouldn't have been able to see you shaking like a leaf and picked on you for it." 

At his teasing, you pouted, puffing out your bottom lip for emphasis. 

"Fine, fine. C'mere." Before you could process his next move, Sebastian untangled his scarf, and in one swift motion wrapped it around your neck, hanging it loose enough for you to fix to your liking. He wore a cocky smirk at the shock written all over your face at the gesture. "There. Apology accepted?"

Your own pair of freezing hands darted to the material without an ounce of hesitation, taking matters into your own hands and flipping the scarf around a couple more times until it fit snug against your neck. The urge to pull it closer to your face and bury yourself in its comfort was almost painful. Even from where it laid below your nose, you could still make out the hints of Sebastian's scent - mostly tobacco, unfortunately, but laced within was the unmistakable smell of cologne, and a hint of… mint? 

"Gee, thanks," you snarkily quipped, a glint of mischief in your eyes, "giving me your scarf when we're just about to go inside. Aren't you a gentleman?" 

Sebastian snorted, shifting himself closer to the door as you fussed at him. "Who am I if not a knight in shining armor?" As if to accentuate his point, his hand found its way to the door handle, pulling it open with a quiet grunt. His free arm motioned inside, topped off with an over the top nod of his head. "After you, madame," he joked, adding in a mock accent for additional flair. Jackass.

Playing along with his game, you responded with a brief curtsy before you walked into the welcomed warmth of the waiting room. You didn't miss the way Sebastian's ears were tinged a light shade of pink. It could've been the cold, sure, but you relished in the concept of flustering him as much as he did you. Who said practicing karma couldn't be fun?

Sebastian trailed behind you, hovering around as you fiddled with checking in at the front desk. It seemed a little formal for such a small town clinic, but it still was a medical facility, no matter the size (or lack thereof).

Once the bit of paperwork was settled, as if on cue, Maru pushed her way past the swinging doors, face lighting up at the sight of you. "Hey, ____!" her eyes wandered over to her brother, expression only mildly souring at the sight. "And hello to you too, Seb. Glad you could make it."

With a wave of her hand, Maru motioned the two of you towards the back, feet falling in step with the familiar patterned tile floor. She tossed her head over her shoulder, grinning from ear to ear. "Today's the big day, huh? Got any guesses as to what you're gonna have?"

Realistically, it was a 50/50 chance of going either way, and you were sure Maru was well aware of that, but the element of surprise always left you excited. "Not a clue, honestly. I've been seeing some old wive's tales online, but I don't think they're too reputable." 

Sebastian simply hummed in agreement. He tucked his arms into the front pocket of his hoodie, appearing unsure of himself in front of the judgement of his sister. You prayed that at some point the two would learn to quit their squabbling and make up somehow. Preferably in time for Maru to become an aunt, to avoid even more familial drama.

"Yeah, those kinds of things aren't the most accurate. After all, you can't debate science." Maru nodded, you and Sebastian turning the corner while she waltzed into the exam room, proud and confident. Sebastian shared a look with you from the corner of his eye, silently laughing at her enthusiasm. 

You couldn't blame her though. In the next hour or so, you were going to finally find out whether or not the peanut inside you was a boy or a girl. From the day you first found out you were pregnant, it was a question that tauntingly dangled over your head. Without a shadow of a doubt, you'd love your child no matter what they happened to be - even if later on they decided they felt differently and expressed themself accordingly. This was your baby. Your teeny tiny human, as much of a pain in the ass (and the bladder) as they could be sometimes. Armed with the knowledge of what you were expecting, your daydreams of the future were bound to feel exponentially real.

Just in time for Harvey to pop his head in, the scarf around your neck suddenly became too hot, too suffocating. You tugged it off of you as politely as possible, folding it up in your lap. Sebastian's head tilted in confusion, an eyebrow raised. Did you not like it now or something..?

"Sorry," you lightly fanned yourself, cheeks burning uncomfortably warm, "hot flashes. They're happening more often, now."

Sebastian quietly replied with an understanding 'aah', offering an open palm for you to hand it back to him. If anything, you were grateful the hot flash could cover up the embarrassment of accidentally grazing your hands together. 

"Ah, the joys of the second trimester," Harvey chirped as he made his way beside you on the table. "How've you been feeling besides those pesky hot flashes, my dear?" The mustached man delicately patted your knee closest to him. "Any other symptoms pop up?"

You rattled off the usual offenders: the hot flashes, the joint aches and leg cramps that turned you into an insomniac, occasional dizziness, the nausea and vomiting spells. Harvey nodded his head to each of your complaints, resting a hand on his chin in thought as the list went on. His eyes widened the slightest bit at the mention of your less-than-favorable digestive issues, but he reeled himself back in at the last second. 

"All of those sound like normal pregnancy symptoms, yes." Harvey scooted his chair over to the ultrasound machine, wheels squeaking pitifully on the floor. "Though I do want you to call us if the nausea and vomiting don't settle down. Or better yet, if you pay us a visit. Each pregnancy is different and no two people have the same symptoms, but it's something I want to keep an eye on."

The reassurance did little to ease your nerves from the underlying seriousness of Harvey's tone. Your heart leaped into your throat, and you had to force yourself to swallow it back down. You didn't dare look back to Sebastian, too afraid of your face calling you out on your worries, or worse yet - seeing him just as upset. 

"That's why you're here though!" Maru jumped in, brandishing a sphygmanometer in hand and a stethoscope dangling off her neck. Wordlessly you raised her arm for her to wrap the blood pressure cuff around, tensing up as usual under the constricting sensation. Maru shot you a sympathetic glance as she pressed the end of the stethoscope against the thin skin of your wrist, listening for your heartbeat. "We're here to make sure everything goes smoothly."

She released the pressure of the cuff soon after, unplugging the stethoscope from her ears and returning the tools to their rightful place. Per routine, she spat out the numbers for Harvey to hear before she wrote them down on your papers. "BP is 117/76, doctor."

You weren't a medical professional, so the numbers meant fuck all to you, but judging by the expression on Harvey's face, you didn't pass the test with flying colors. "Is that.. okay?"

Harvey turned his attention from the machine back onto you. "It's in the normal range, but it is on the higher end. Never fret though. Stress can also cause a raise in blood pressure, and I'm sure being in a clinical setting isn't the most relaxing way to spend your morning!" He spun around in his chair to face Maru, who looked to be scribbling down more than just those few numbers on your chart. "We can try again before we leave and see if it doesn't get better, hm?"

The fear in your chest loosened its clenching on your heart, but barely so. There were too many unspoken words between the two of them than you were comfortable with. A hand brushing against your arm knocked you out of your head.

"Hey," Sebastian quickly squeezed your bicep to grab your attention, "you're good. It's just nerves." 

You couldn't find the proper words right then, so you settled with chewing the inside of your cheek before nodding back to him. 

"...I'm nervous too," he admitted under his breath, low enough for only your ears to catch, "this whole thing is nerve-wracking. But it's all okay." He gave another gentle squeeze before returning his hand to the scarf in his lap, ambly running his fingers over the individual strands. Yeah, he was nervous alright.

Maru was back to poking things at you, making you hold a thermometer under your tongue while she prepared a cup on the counter with some tape and your name written in Sharpie. "Alright, one last thing and I'll leave you be. Can you fill this at least a quarter of the way full? There's a bathroom upstairs." 

You went to nod, but the thermometer beeping in your mouth cut you short. Maru diligently came over to take it from you, reading off a thankfully normal temperature reading. She exchanged your designated piss cup in return for her thermometer, offering to walk you up to the bathroom if you wanted.

"I'm alright, thank you though," you smiled up at Maru, "I'm sure I'll manage to find it." 

The nurse grinned back. "Alright! Holler if you need anything," she went on as you rose to your feet, "don't worry about not having enough! We can manage with whatever you got."

\---

One full cup of pee later, embarrassingly carried back into the room in front of Sebastian, and you were back in the hot seat, shirt pulled up to expose your belly. No matter how many times it happened, the cold gel on your skin always caught you off guard and started you. Sebastian sucked at hiding the snicker at you jumping from surprise. When nobody was looking, you swiped a bit of the excess gel on your thumb and wiped it on the back of his hand. That's what he got for laughing, the jerk.

Gel fight aside, you and Sebastian both found yourself entranced again by the sight of your baby on the screen. They were looking more and more like an actual human being this time, instead of the wacky, disproportionate alien that you saw a couple weeks ago. They had two hands and two feet, their digits too small to count individually. At one point they looked like they were attempting to stretch their legs out, but the weirdest part was getting to feel it from the inside.

 _Get comfy while you can_ , you mumbled to yourself. _Only gonna get to be a tighter squeeze from here on, kiddo_.

Harvey and Maru got into their groove of taking measurements, both on the machine and with measuring tape on your stomach. More and more numbers got spewed around, none seeming to be of any concern unlike earlier. With their plethora of tests out of the way, Harvey beamed with pride. 

"I'm happy to tell you that you've still got a perfectly healthy little one!" The cheer in his voice was contagious, enough so that both you and Sebastian found yourselves grinning back at him. 

"Are you guys ready to find out what you're having?" With a dramatic pause, Harvey attempted a drum roll by patting his free hand on one knee, though it fell flat. You appreciated the charm of it nonetheless. 

Harvey didn't give either you or Sebastian a chance to answer his question, but you weren't upset about it. He knew just as well as you did that everyone in the room was more than ready to find out.

It took a little more prodding, the baby having rolled around a little out of view, but eventually they came back into focus, thankfully mostly still this time. The added pressure on your stomach felt like nothing when Harvey's announcement finally met your ears.

"I hope you guys have been thinking of names for your baby girl!" 

That was it for you. The dam broke again, damn hormones making you so easily emotional. Your vision blurred as tears welled up in your eyes. Immediately you wiped them away with the back of your sleeve, not wanting to obscure the view of your baby. Your daughter. 

You cheerfully laughed without restraint, belly wiggling at the motion until it was uncomfortable. Sebastian hadn't said a word the whole time, but one look in his eyes said everything you needed to know.

They were glossed over, teetering on the edge of spilling, but the man held the self control you lacked to contain his tears. That didn't make it any less meaningful, though.

"D'you hear that, Seb?" you choked out, unconsciously reaching a hand out to comfort him, "we're having a girl. A little girl."

Your hand landed against his cheek, and in a moment of vulnerability, Sebastian nudged himself into it, leaning into the warmth of your palm. After a pause he raised his own hand up to reach yours, cupping his hand with yours, not caring about lacing your fingers together.

"Yeah," he let out the tiniest sniffle, a single tear overflowing and staining a line down his cheek, "I heard." 

You'd never seen Sebastian to the point of tears before, happy or sad, but you knew he had to be feeling a lot to be so expressive about it. You ran a thumb along his hand, soothing him in a way you knew calmed yourself. 

Maru was even holding back her own set of tears, no doubt imagining all the fun she was going to have with her niece come the next few months. The sound of her sniffling made Sebastian's head shoot up in her direction, and immediately he released his grip on your hand to wipe his own eyes. 

The empty space where his hand was seconds prior shouldn't have made your chest ache, but it did, and at this point there was no denying that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IM SORRY IF YOU WEREN'T WANTING A GIRL BUT LISTEN- I THINK SEB WITH A DAUGHTER IS ADORABLE
> 
> this chapter ended rather abruptly and for that i apologize. ive been working on it for hours today and i NEEDED to get it out there, im so excited for what you guys think! i may go back and add more to the second half later
> 
> that being said, NOW we have our final name contest!! who will this kiddo be... ash? or thalia? vote now on your phones: https://strawpoll.com/2v3cj3ox6


	11. [ 9/24 ] more updates! (what to expect, plus thanks)

hey y'all! i posted a couple of days ago but still feel bad about leaving this fic untouched for months, so i felt like adding a bit more in addition to that last chapter.

now that we're about halfway through, i figure i'd show a little look behind the scenes of what i have planned.

for sure i have **a two part epilogue** , filled with sap and maybe a little spice 👀 we'll see when we get there. the remaining chapters are VERY vaguely planned out, but it looks like there will be **around eight more chapters** before the epilogue. that's always subject to change depending on my muse and my rl schedule, but i think it's a good starting point!

as for what exactly those chapters will contain - without spoiling _too_ much - i'd look forward to, of course, more sap as reader and seb figure each other out and inevitably have their own mental journies of realizing their feelings. there will be some holidays from both real life AND the game. our dear reader still doesn't have the farm house ready for a baby yet, so perhaps that will be part of future chapters as well hohoho. most notably, i have a surprise up my sleeve that may or may not be as impactful as i think it'll be, but i promise a good ending for everybody. the sads are only temporary! it makes the fluff sweeter.

if you notice a couple chapters missing, i just took out a couple of update posts. i've saved the results of the original strawpolls, so no worries about that!

as always, thank you guys for reading. my fic means a lot to me, these characters even moreso, so any feedback i get means the world to me. even if you're too shy or anxious to comment (which i completely get! i'm still working on coming outta my shell myself) i promise i don't bite. getting to talk to people who also love stardew and for one reason or another enjoy my writing is the highlight of the whole process. the amount of times i go back and reread old comments when i'm not feeling motivated or if i'm self conscious about my work is nuts. it truly makes a difference. but you're never pressured to, of course!! kudos mean just as much ❤ comments are just there for those who feel comfortable enough with it. they're never required.

i hope you're all doing well! stay safe, drink water, take care of yourself. hopefully i can give you guys a fic that feels good to come home to and escape from the rest of the world and into the tiny little pelican town. see you next update!

P.S. don't forget to vote in the final name strawpoll! seb and reader's little one needs a name! the other names from the previous polls are still in my databank of ideas, so just because your suggestion(s) didn't make it, don't feel bad! i'll incorporate them somehow. pinkie promise

[strawpoll link](https://strawpoll.com/2v3cj3ox6)


	12. [ february, week 24 ]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A certain romantic holiday pops around, and Sebastian's internal conflict continues to build.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm not gonna lie to y'all, i'm not the biggest fan of this chapter. dialogue heavy scenes are not my thing and ik the only way to get better is practice, so here we are! i spent too long on this to scrap it, and if i compulsively fix every last thing my perfectionist ass finds wrong with it, it'll never get uploaded.
> 
> bear with me folks, i promise longer and more meaningful chapters from this point forward. i needed some fluff room to ensure i didn't have too many gaps in time between months!
> 
> we also get to listen to seb go off and be emotionally constipated about having a crush. how does the reader feel in return? i suppose we shall find out in the future~
> 
> no tws apply here, woohoo

A month had passed since the band's concert. Since that fateful evening, there were certain aspects in Sebastian's life that were beginning to change. 

He found out a lot of things.

For one, he found that - granted you stood in the audience - live music performances weren't all that terrible and insufferable to be a part of. Sure, his closest friends were there standing alongside him, sharing the spotlight like a well passed around drink. But having an extra set of eyes looking up from the ground, especially peepers that were as gorgeous as yours, maybe wasn't half bad. He never pined for the attention and admiration of thousands, and he couldn't care less about making it big time and going viral. 

The only person he truly craved the admiration of was you.

Another revelation? You cleared the muck and grime inside his head. 

He'd known Sam since they were both in diapers, enough inside jokes and wholesome memories between them to fill a book. Abigail was a newer addition into his life, strong and stubborn enough to pry past the walls upon walls he'd spent years building as a defense mechanism against damage he'd never confess.

But you? Somehow, with powers beyond his comprehension, you shook him to his very core. With a wave of your hand and a smile near as radiant as the sun, the foundation of those very same walls - the ones he was _convinced_ were impenetrable - cracked under the immense pressure. 

All of his defenses came crashing down when it came to you. Truthfully, he'd consider it a blessing to fall to his knees if it guaranteed that smile would never leave his life.

His chest had felt different ever since the first time he chaperoned alongside you at Harvey's clinic. If asked to pin down an exact moment, Sebastian would reference that smile you tossed his way - a priceless gift he was vastly undeserving of - when he declared the importance of coming to future appointments. But the fact of the matter was that there were truly multiple instances he felt that signature warmth, in the shallow pit nestled inside his ribs, not just the once.

You were different. Fuck, you were different. In all the best possible ways. If only he could accept that truth for what it was instead of shoving his emotions somewhere deep inside. 

He'd probably give you the key to the cage he whisked his feelings off to at the drop of a hat if you asked him for it. But a prison guard is not one to take kindly to swindling, nor was Sebastian apt to handing over the power to crush him from the inside out.

You wouldn't though. Surely you wouldn't. _Please don't_. 

But perhaps the most horrifying realization of all was that he was having a daughter. If he didn't drink already, Yoba knows he'd need some serious booze before attempting to wrap his head around how to deal with raising a girl. 

Maru, Robin, here he comes for advice.

* * *

Holidays were stupid, that much was a given. Especially holidays centered entirely around some bogus idea that fed on the capitalist ideas of materialism equalling affection. 

That being said, when Valentine's Day rolled around that year, Sebastian felt… different. 

At first he didn't - it was another boring day in February, no different than the other fourteenths in the past two decades.

Even when he was chilling with Sam out by the river, basking underneath the miniature canopy of one of the oak trees, he didn't pay it any mind. Nor did he bat an eyelash when his friend shoved a pair of two notebooks in the hand not busy clutching a cig, demanding his opinion on which color Sebastian thought Penny would care for more.

Hell, he didn't even consider the implications of Emily gossiping with her sister, all fluffed up and proud to brandish the gorgeous ruby amulet her girlfriend in the far off Calico Desert mailed her.

For some ungodly reason, it was the sight of Abigail, feet dancing awkwardly in place as she anxiously awaited for Haley to answer her door, a handmade bouquet of Crocus flowers bouncing behind her back.

Maybe it was the unrequited feelings from years passed. A twinge of jealousy in the way Abigail delicately kissed one of Haley's petite hands, or the way it made the blonde flush and hide her face behind the purple blossoms.

Or maybe it was guilt, for lack of a better word. Whatever the case, it led him into Pierre's store, browsing the aisles for an acceptable gift for his own valentine.

No, not valentine - you were his friend. Unless he missed the memo that declared that accidentally creating a child together qualified two people to be valentines, you two were friends. Strictly. No matter how he felt at the end of the day, clinging onto a pillow with shut eyes, imagining the plush material to be you beside him instead.

What did pregnant women like, anyway? Surely none of the shelves of various seeds and saplings, fertilizers and other gardening supplies, or any of the plethora of cooking ingredients would appeal to you. Food was one thing, but you'd probably kick his ass if he showed up at your doorstep with a bag full of flour, oil, and sugar, like it's a DIY project for your own gift. 

Pierre's was hopeless. The only other option was the JojaMart. Which, honestly, would've been fine and dandy, if not for a certain spiky haired extrovert working part-time at the establishment. 

When Abigail bursted through the back door to the store, waltzing through the aisles on her way out, the decision was promptly made for Sebastian. He wasn't about to get heckled by her if she snooped around and found out his plan. But a brooding Sebastian was a terribly out of place sight to see in the middle of a general store, of all places - something that Abigail just couldn't bear to pass up on.

One minute, he was checking his phone to confirm the time, and the next he audibly _yelped_ , startled silly by Abigail poking at the ticklish spot on his side that Sam blackmailed him with. 

"Easy tiger! Didn't mean to scare you so bad," Abigail bit her lip, well aware if he caught her chuckling, Sebastian would slug her without hesitation. "That's a new one," she snorted, referring to the entirely unmanly noise that escaped Sebastian's soul. 

"Fuck off," Sebastian went to aim for a punch on her shoulder, only to spot Pierre's head pop out behind one of the aisles. He grit his teeth. "You're lucky your old man's here." 

Abigail rolled her eyes, piercing right through his mock aggression. "Didn't your mom ever teach you not to hit girls?"

"Surely your mom taught you not to give people a reason to hit you?" Sebastian huffed, stuffing his phone back into his pocket. He heard her stifle a laugh from behind his back. Wicked woman.

"Punchable offenses are subjective, my friend," Abigail replied in a sing-song manner. "Anyway, what'cha doing? Robin send you on a grocery run?"

Of course she would pry. Sebastian grunted and nodded his head, hair obscuring his face in the process. Anything he said or did was material for his friend to twist around for her own tortuous amusement, so he acted minimally. Thankfully, Abigail took the bait, skipping on out of the store shortly after to leave him to attend to his feigned duties. 

By the time Sebastian slithered out, giving ample time for Abigail to get lost, it was a quarter until noon. Acceptable enough of a time window, all things considered. As long as he hauled ass over to the JojaMart, immediately found wherever the candied sweets were on display, and checked out in record time, there was a sliver of hope that Sam wouldn't be in yet.

Was the fluorescent lighting always so dreadful inside the supermarket? Sebastian rubbed the corners of his eyes, blinking a couple of times to allow the poor things to adjust to the illegally bright and reflective surface of just about everything inside. Shaking his head, he meandered around the aisles, returning a miniscule wave back to one of the cashiers who greeted him.

Cleaning supplies? No, that seemed relatively discriminating to give as a valentine's gift. Enough packs of JojaCola to satiate an entire army? That'd be an acceptable present for Sam, maybe, but not you. More baking ingredients anyone could get at Pierre's for less money and shame? He already ruled that idea out.

A box of chocolates, conveniently shaped like a cartoon heart? That could work.

The only obstacle that separated him and his target? The jaded employee practically dosing off while mopping away at the same stain on the tile floor over and over. 

It's not that Shane was a particularly bad guy. He was just… intimidating, even to the likes of Sebastian. Well, it was that, paired with the fact he was standing directly in front of the shelf he needed to reach.

"Excuse me," Sebastian settled on, clearing his throat to snap Shane out of whatever was going on inside that head of his. "Hate to bother, but I just need something behind you."

Shane sluggishly raised his chin, eyes bouncing to Sebastian to follow his line of sight. Tilting his head over his shoulder at the shelf he was propped against, he scoffed. Valentine's sweets. Figures.

"You too, huh?" Shane kicked off the wall, bracing himself against the mop handle. "Piss that girl of yours off? Trust me, kid. Chocolates and mushiness only get you so far."

Sebastian scowled. "It's for the holiday. And she's not-"

"Whatever," the older man shrugs, rubbing a hand against a stubbly cheek, "don't get too comfortable." 

Not sure how exactly to respond to such a bold claim, Sebastian let Shane get away with it, miserably dragging the rolling mop bucket down the opposite end of the aisle. The younger man stretched out to avoid the puddle the mop left behind, a lanky arm reaching out for the first box he could get his hands on. No time to be picky or fussy about his selection.

He was an asshair away from making a break for it. When Morris's booming voice hollered across the store, calling out to a tardy Sam, Sebastian knew he was screwed.

There was no hiding from anyone to be done - Sebastian stuck out like a sore thumb, even as he all but threw the box of chocolates onto the conveyer belt at the nearest register. Sam, in all his loud and bubbly glory, chanted Sebastian's name, begging him to look his way. Sebastian didn't cave in under the pressure - at least not until Sam was abandoning his register, before he even clocked in.

"Don't act like you didn't hear me, Seb!" Sam paraded over, deliberately ignoring the pleas of the other cashier to go back to his post. He didn't, as expected. Instead, the nosey son of a bitch swiped the bag in Sebastian's hand, gasping when he spotted the goldmine it held inside.

"Oh, _Seeeeeb_ ," he cooed, voice reaching that high pitch that never failed to make Sebastian want to strangle him, "these for ____? You sly dog, you!"

Sebastian slapped Sam's hand, forcing him to drop the chocolates back into his bag. The shit eating grin of his never faltered, hand slap be damned. "Shut up. Give it back."

"You're so testy," the blonde puffed, dangling the bag just out of his friend's reach. "Ah, ah. I'll hand it over. You just gotta admit it."

For fuck's sake. If the already incredibly pronounced frown on Sebastian's face stayed any longer it would get stuck there. Permanently. "Admit what? That you're the worst friend ever and should mind your business?"

Sam clutched his free hand against his chest, visibly wounded by Sebastian's venom. "You hurt me so, Sebastian. I just wanna hear you admit that you're becoming a softie!"

A "softie"? Like hell he'd let Sam get off the hook with such immature name-calling. Sebastian clenched his jaw to ground himself before launching forwards to yank his bag back from the instigator. 

"You're an _actual_ child," Sebastian's eyes rolled back with a sigh. Better to behave like a child than have one, to be fair. "Get back to work before Morris rips you a new asshole."

At the threat of a scolding from his higher up, Sam's face dropped. The blonde tiptoed to peek around Sebastian, checking to see if Morris had budged from his spot next to the doors. "Fine. You win this round. But y'know, girls love when their men get all affectionate!" Sam's voice lilted, humming thoughtfully by the end of his shtick. 

Sebastian cut him off, walking away from the scene his friend started masterminded. "Right, I'll be sure to take love advice from the guy who didn't know his girlfriend's favorite color."

"Hey!" Sam shouted, cupping his hands around his mouth to ensure his voice reached Sebastian's stubborn ears, even as he sauntered out. "Like you know ____'s favorite color!"

"She's not my girlfriend, either!" Sebastian hollered back over his shoulder. He whipped his head back as soon as he could, the tell-tale warmth in his face threatening to call his bluff. "Go do your job!" 

The last thing Sebastian could make out as he passed through JojaMart's sliding doors was Sam's characteristic squeal, echoed by the deeper, overwhelmingly displeased voice of Morris.

Heh, busted.

* * *

The footpath he followed to your farmhouse was almost routine now. His feet carried him, aimless in thought, muscle memory taking over. Embarrassing, really.

What was even more humiliating was the way his hands shook on the trek there, pale fingers clenching onto the plastic bag for dear life. 

Sebastian wasn't normally the type to go starry-eyed or become a fumbling mess at the slightest hint of affection - at least as far as he was aware. Yet his body betrayed him, horribly so. He had partaken in gifting previous partners various trinkets and such in the past, so why was the idea of handing you a box of chocolates so mortifying?

 _Because it's her_ , his brain didn't hesitate to fill the blanks, _she's not like the rest of them._

Around the point in his walk where he passed by the bus stop, his chest returned to that awful, constricting tightness he felt whenever he was around you. It was equal parts painful and wonderful at the same time. Painful, for obvious reasons; the most noteworthy being that it reminded him he was human, feeble and weak in the heart, willing to run the risk of shattering at the meekest chance of being reciprocated. Though it was an amazing feeling for exactly the same reasons - up until then, Sebastian thought himself broken, with holes in his heart and lacking enough left of it to suture up. You reminded him that there was something going on below, even if it terrified him to think about.

He didn't have time to wallow in his emotions after a thunderous boom came from the direction of the farmhouse.

Sebastian wasn't sure what he expected to find when he made it onto your property, but seeing you chopping down trees in your sixth month of pregnancy didn't even make the cut.

You really were something else, huh?

He somehow managed to sneak up on you as you wiped the perspiration off your forehead with the back of your hand - funny, considering it was still cold enough to see his breath. You had to have been going at it for a while now to work up a sweat.

"What are you doing?" Sebastian questioned with a quirk of his brow. 

"What does it look like?" You deadpanned, cursing him for scaring you. He ducked out of the way to avoid a playful shove. "I don't have any crops to take care of, so I might as well work on hacking down some of this forest finally."

"I can see that," he nodded to the side, nudging his chin at another fallen tree laid to rest in the field, "but you should be taking it easy now, shouldn't you?"

You smirked at his concern. Sebastian yearned to kiss the expression right off of you. Even in his irritation at you blatantly not resting.

"I'm a big girl. I know my limits," you rolled your neck, rubbing a sore spot in the junction where your neck and shoulders met. "I was chopping trees before _this_ ," you motioned towards your belly, "so I know how far I can push it. Besides, I was about to call it a day anyway."

"Good," he snapped, a touch more aggressive than intended, though purely out of worry. Noticing your eyes drifting towards what he was carrying with him, Sebastian shoved his hands in the bag and dug around for its contents. "I uh, got'cha something. Y'know. For Valentine's or whatnot."

You tilted your head like a confused puppy. Precious. Still bewildered, you pulled your phone out of your overalls. "Ohhhh, right. It is the fourteenth isn't it?" 

You forgot Valentine's was a thing? Sebastian held back the urge to rub his temples. He could've completely foregone all the hassle of finding something to give to you, including the torment dealt to him by his friends. You wouldn't have noticed. But he'd also feel pretty shitty, so that counted for something.

Sebastian gingerly handed over his present, heart leaping into his throat at the sensation of your knuckles brushing against his own. "Yeah. I'm not one to celebrate, but I kind of got you pregnant, so... I'm obligated by law to at least give you something for the occasion." 

Your eyes widened and his heart skipped a beat. A gloved hand paused to brush off a few straggler snowflakes clinging to the outside of the box. "D'aww, Seb. You really didn't have to do this." Your words were passive, but your heartfelt smile didn't lie. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it," he shrugged awkwardly, "you got me that obsidian at the fair. Not that chocolate is on the same gifting grounds as a rock, but…"

"Be quiet, I love it. You spoil me," you cheekily declared. "Well, I gotta gift you back now, right? Care to join me for some coffee? No offense, but you look exhausted."

"I'll have you know that's just my face," Sebastian snorted. "You don't have to though. I really should be getting back home anyway."

Holding the box tightly to your chest, you gazed up at him, batting your eyelashes. When did you learn to do the puppy dog eyes look so perfectly?

"Aw, c'mon. It's only fair. Plus, you haven't seen Milo since a couple months ago! Don't you think he misses you?"

Dammit. You won him over with the cat. "Fine, but only for a little. I've gotta start work for a client soon." 

He was lying. His schedule was free for the foreseeable future. Sebastian just couldn't bare the idea of spending too much time around you, lest he trip and fall even more into his feelings. You were a danger to his health - and his heart.

Cheering at your success, you led Sebastian up into the house, pausing to kick off your boots and leave them outside for the snow to melt off. You stopped by the kitchen counter to set down the chocolates, taking advantage of the moment to click at the coffee machine to start a brew. "Make yourself at home. I gotta change real fast." 

_Can't make myself at home when home is a person, not a place._

Sebastian shoved that thought back to the farest recesses of his head. Now was _not_ the time to digest that. "Alright."

If making himself at home entailed standing around anxiously until you returned into the room, then Sebastian aced that prompt. You waddled back over to the couch, sans a couple layers of clothing from bundling up earlier. Flopping down on your butt, the couch jumped and creaked at the added weight. "You don't mind if I rest a little, do you? My legs and feet are killing me these days."

"'Course not. It's your own place. Don't let me stop you from anything." Sebastian's eyes wandered around the interior of the farmhouse, admiring the newer set of decorations you'd put up since the last time he visited. 

When you patted at one of the spare cushions, he assumed you were calling over Milo and remained standing in place where he was. 

"No, Milo, I wasn't talking to you," you hushed from across the room. "You always get the couch, lazy."

Sebastian chuffed at your banter with the feline. "Yeah, you tell him."

"Those pats were inviting you over, doofus. You'd think someone as catlike as you would pick up on that cue," you teased, quickly poking your tongue out at him. "There's still room for you over here. I'm not that big yet."

There was no logical reason for Sebastian to get as flustered as he did at the offer, but logic went right out the window when it came to you, he supposed. "Oh. Sure."

The man slowly made his way over next to you, like you were going to spook and abandon him if he moved too quickly. How many times had he sat by you before, or even just shared the same space as him? Why now, of all times, did interacting with you become so difficult?

Both you and Sebastian huddled on the old couch, him propping his feet against the coffee table while you splayed your legs on top of his thighs. You had claimed you just needed to stretch out your feet - a valid reason, honestly - but something about the smirk on your face when Sebastian tensed up had him convinced you knew exactly how much of an effect you had on him.

It was all said and done in a matter of minutes, the coffee machine diligently dinging to alert everyone it was finished. You inched your legs up and off of Sebastian, starting to get up off the couch, but he held you back with a tap on the knee.

"No, I got it," Sebastian rose to his feet, gangly legs carrying him to the kitchen in a few long strides.

"Sebastian. I'm pregnant, not paralyzed," you insisted, Milo stealing the warm spot Sebastian's rear left behind.

"You're telling me you actually wanted to get up?" he questioned. The silence that followed answered for you. "Yeah. That's what I thought. Where are your mugs?"

You exhaled a mighty sigh of defeat. "Top cabinet. On the left. Don't laugh at them or I'll kill you."

"Why would I-" Sebastian let go of the cabinet handle mid-sentence, squinting at one mug in particular. It was plain white all over, with a black and white drawing of a cow in the middle of it. Directly above and below the illustration were the words 'holy' followed by 'cow'. Sebastian slapped a hand over his mouth to trap the laugh threatening to break free. 

_This_ was the woman he was falling for.

"Shut up! I told you not to laugh!" You whined, twisting around to glare over at him. 

"I'm not, I'm not," he bit the inside of his cheek in an effort to calm himself. Selecting another, less entertaining coffee mug for himself, he settled both cups down to fill them up. "Pinkie promise."

"Pinkie promises don't mean anything if you're not physically doing it, jerk."

As he began to pour his drink, he noticed a wall of writing on the very bottom of the mug. "'If you're reading this, you've been poisoned,'" Sebastian read aloud, grinning maniacally when you tossed a pillow his way to make him shut up. The battered up thing plopped onto the wooden floor, landing a few feet shy despite the valiant effort.

"Alright, I'm done. I swear," Sebastian finished up pouring into your cow mug, shaking his head at it one final time as he returns the pot to the machine. "You want creamer, or nah?"

"Yeah. I prefer things to be nice and sweet, unlike some people," you replied, pointing a finger in the direction of where you last put your bottle. "Should be over there on the counter somewhere. I've been really good about losing things recently."

'Pregnancy brain'. He recalled reading that phrase online one time in his midnight research binges, as he did whenever he couldn't sleep. Not that he'd admit it.

With each hand firmly gripping onto a mug handle and a bottle of creamer tucked delicately between his arm and his side, Sebastian ever so cautiously returned to the couch, careful to avoid the pillow you threw at him. Rest easy, fallen soldier.

You grabbed a couple of coasters and slid one to his side of the coffee table. "Here, use that. Coffee rings are a bitch and a half to get out of this thing. Learned that the hard way."

Sebastian clicked his tongue. "Of course," he shoved your mug towards you, meeting you halfway. With exact precision to avoid any potential spills, he placed his own drink down onto the coaster you gave to him. The creamer was the last item he handed over, opting to sit it down on the table and push it your way with a single finger.

"Uh, Seb?"

"Hmm?" Sebastian lifted the coffee to his mouth, lips kissing the rim of the mug.

"I love that you brought me my creamer, but I can't stir this in with my finger," you snickered. 

Oh. Spoons were a thing. Right. He really needed to get himself together.

"Shit, sorry," he paused to gulp down a hearty amount of his drink, "let me grab one for you."

"Do you mind grabbing those chocolates, too? The baby's demanding them."

" _The baby_ seems to think I'm her butler," Sebastian murmured under his breath, cracking a smile when you blew a raspberry at him in a half-assed rebuttal. He fiddled with a few cabinet drawers until he finally found the one containing all of your utensils. "Only kidding."

His final trip to the kitchen over with, Sebastian balanced a spoon on top of the box of chocolates in one hand, bending down to reclaim the fallen pillow on the way back over to you. "Here you go, your highness," he added on, poking his tongue out to mirror your earlier taunts.

"Oh, whatever would I do without you?" You dramatically hummed, reaching out with desperate grabby hands for the chocolates he promised you. 

Sebastian handed the prized sweets over, tossing the forgotten pillow back onto the couch. Unwilling to disturb the now snoring Milo, he came to terms with resting in front of it, sitting criss-cross to enjoy the rest of his drink. 

The remainder of the hour - Sebastian refused to call this a date, it was certainly not of that caliber - was spent primarily in comfortable silence, save for the odd snarky comment towards the cheesy informercials running on the television. 

"You felt any more kicks lately?" Sebastian inquired between commercials, eliminating the possibility of distracting you while you were watching your beloved program. 

"Yeah, actually," you wistfully sighed. "She's starting to get as upset with the tight squeeze as I am nowadays."

Sebastian couldn't help but frown. He craved to experience that special little moment with you more than anything else he'd ever yearned for. "I must have really bad timing, then. You sure you didn't let the other two get to feel it before me?"

"I'm positive. Believe it or not, you're the only one that pays me visits in this tiny corner of town." You sighed, spinning the remaining coffee around with your spoon. "It's just me and Milo most of the time. But we make it work, right bubba?" Milo let out a surprised chirp when you wiggled and tapped your feet on whatever fur you could reach.

No matter how much you brushed it off, the heartache in your voice was palpable. The lengths he'd go to in that moment to bring back your cheerfulness petrified him.

"I'm sorry. I should pop by more often," Sebastian untangled his legs and stood up, walking over to put his mug in the kitchen sink. "Maybe then she'll finally feel up for meeting me, huh?"

"Well, I for one would enjoy the company. Even if she doesn't," you mumbled. 

With how quietly you spoke, he couldn't help but wonder… was he supposed to hear that? He didn't push it. Instead, he flipped on the water and swirled the mug around to rinse it. One less thing for you to worry about. Plus the water covered up his voice and gave him an excuse to stew in his head for a second.

"You sure you're okay here, though? Seriously." Sebastian looked around for any sort of towel to dry his cup. When his search proved futile, he gave up and left the mug still dripping at the bottom of the sink.

"Like I said, me and Milo have got it covered." Sebastian turned to see you beginning to chow down on the candy, tossing an empty wrapper at Milo for him to play with as you shoved the chocolate in your mouth. "Don't worry your pretty little head about it."

"If you say so," he leaned down to dust away some leftover cat fur on his hoodie. Milo's Valentine's present for him - how considerate. "You know you can text me if you need anything."

You successfully ended him with what came out of your mouth next.

"I promise I will. You're acting like such a dad already. I'm impressed." 

Right through the heart.

It was easy to fall into the old dynamic that existed before everything fell apart. Back when you were just friends, a mutual accomplice to Abigail and Sam's escapades. After Sebastian apologized for his wrongdoings at the very beginning of everything, his friendship with you slowly but surely eased back to the way it was previously.

That all being said, it was always a shock to be reminded that he was going to have to be a parent alongside you. Sure, he could see the evidence plain as day, but hearing anyone referring to the fact he was going to be a father royally fucked him up. Especially when the person saying it was the mother of his kid.

He played it off, as always, to give off the impression it didn't faze him. "Watch out. Next thing you know I'll be wearing cargo shorts and falling asleep the second my ass hits the couch." 

Your laugh brought him back out of his stupor. "Can't wait to witness that for myself. For now, just try to keep the dad jokes at a minimum for everyone's sanity, okay?"

Sebastian gave a sarcastic salute as he started for the door. "With pleasure. Thanks for having me."

You promptly saluted back to him. "No problem. And thank you for the chocolate. Baby says thank you, too."

"I'll take your word for it," he puffed through his nose. As he reached for the handle, he paused. "Oh yeah, ____? You got a little something right here," he poked at the corner of his mouth, black painted nails starkly contrasting the pale skin around them.

You struggled with translating which side of your mouth he was referring to, frowning as his laugh grew in amusement. Eventually your fingers reached their destination, wiping off some excess chocolate from where you missed your mouth. Without missing a beat, you flipped him off, thinking he wouldn't notice how increasingly flustered the whole thing made you.

Cute.

* * *

"Is it bad for ____ to be chopping trees down?" 

In Maru and Robin's defense, it was an oddball question to throw over the dinner table. 

"Like, for the environment, or..?" Maru poked at a rogue piece of asparagus that kept shifting on the plate everytime she attempted to stab it with her fork.

"I mean for her," Sebastian continued between bites, "and for the baby. I caught her doing it today, was all. It just seems like it'd be bad."

Robin tilted her head back and forth, pondering the question herself. "I imagine it wouldn't be too much stress unless she overdoes it."

"Though she should probably give it a rest," Maru chimed in, finally successful in nabbing her vegetable. "If she needs help she should ask Mom about it, don't you think?" It was a rhetorical question. Of course it would be better for his mom to help. He wasn't being unreasonably overprotective, right?

"I mean, the shop didn't stop even when I was pregnant with Sebastian," Robin stated, tapping a finger against the table as she recollected memories from way back when. "I chopped down trees on the regular with him, and I think he turned out pretty okay."

Maru chuckled into her latest bite. "Debatable."

"Really now?" Sebastian's voice flattened, uncharacteristically calm for what his normal response to a jab at him would be. The sly smile gave away his faux frustrated act. "At least I didn't get dropped on my head as a kid."

She didn't - there was no way his mom would purposefully harm her kids like that. But for all Maru knew, he could've been telling the truth.

"Excuse you! I did not do such a thing!" Robin slammed a hand down on her table and defended herself, unsure whether to take her son seriously or not. 

"Hey, it's a good thing," Sebastian smirked and pointed a thumb to the side at Maru. "She had to get her smarts from somewhere right? Maybe you jumbled her brains so much you went and made her a genius."

Maru felt obligated to join the teasing - when else would Sebastian willingly play along and not immediately storm off, pissed and on a rampage? 

"He's got a point. Do you think it's too late for him? Maybe if you drop him now you'll knock something back into place."

At that, Robin's facade cracked. "You two have your fun," she chuckled into her glass, "leave it to depricating jokes to be the thing you guys bond over. I did not drop you, Maru. Don't listen to your brother."

Sebastian peeped a look over at Maru for the first time the whole dinner. He couldn't explain it, but her smile at their mom was contagious. He also couldn't help but ruin the sappy moment by elbowing his sister in the arm. Sibling law and all that.

"How do you know I'm lying though? You totally just got a concussion and forgot all about it," Sebastian snickered, almost choking on his food in the process. Okay, maybe he deserved that.

Demetrius rounded the corner, shrugging off his lab coat to drape over the back of his chair. "Sorry I'm late," he whispered to Robin as he kissed the top of her head, "got caught up in work."

Shuffling over to fix himself a plate, the hushed laughter between the rest of his family caught him off guard. "What's got you all giggling so much over there? I know you can't possibly find your mother's cooking that funny."

"Nothing," Maru managed to spit out, "we're good, Dad."

"She's lying. We're laughing about how she got dropped on her head as a kid," Sebastian corrected, not bothering to look up at Demetrius or explain himself further.

With that, the table erupted back into a fit of laughter - even Robin failed to hold back a couple chuckles. Demetrius's head cocked, scanning the faces of his family members for any hint of seriousness that should've been given to such a horrible claim. At his befuddled face, the trio's amusement increased tenfold. 

Maybe saving himself a plate for later and going back to work wasn't such a bad idea.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> for the record google says coffee is OK for pregnancy as long as the caffeine is moderated. please don't come after me
> 
> that last scene i heavily debated putting in, honestly. it seems way too cheesey and ooc, and most of my qualms are with that section, but this family needs some closure. i want to also use this fic as a sort of attempt at a fix-it for all four of them
> 
> naming poll is still up! we'll be discussing names next chapter, but the final decision won't come until later. thanks for reading !!


	13. [ march, week 28 ]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You have your 28 week appointment, smack dab in the middle of your own set of realizations.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we're starting to get to the good parts now! seb and reader are finally getting closer as the months draw to a close. the fluff you get to see in this chapter is a good idea of what future chapters will hold ;)
> 
> tw for medical talk involving pregnancy, including a scene with a blood draw (but is not specific). also there's some slight suggestive themes scattered in but it's nothing graphic (that shall come later wink wonk)
> 
> there's a part two for this particular week because this chapter's roughly 7k and i didn't want to stretch it out even more. but i have a feeling you guys will enjoy this one! i had a fun time with it, and i hope that shines through.

Sebastian was an enigma. It didn't take a PhD or a comically large magnifying glass to come to that conclusion. He was as introverted as they come - a special flavor of hermit that only few people got the chance at appreciating the true nature of. Being one of the few exceptions to Sebastian's 'don't talk to me, leave me alone' rule sat somewhere between a blessing and a curse.

Taking the rare opportunity to see past that sequestered exterior was a double-edged sword. The more and more it began to chip away, a painstaking pace required for all of the pieces to crumble, what laid underneath was nothing short of remarkable.

What he lacked in major book smarts he more than made up for in being well versed in other subjects. 

Sebastian could tear apart his bike, its innards splayed out haphazardly all around him, and put it back together without breaking a sweat. 

He also held the powerful gift of a storyteller, creating plotlines and scenarios when playing Solarian Chronicles that even the most dull minded people could envision.

That's not to mention the way he paved his own path and became a freelance coder, scoring some decent paychecks with his artistic freedom left intact. That was more than you could say after having escaped from the maddeningly draining office job in Zuzu City. 

There was even a time when all four of you were hanging out by the lake, and Sebastian busted out some knowledge no one was aware existed in his head before then. He had spotted what you considered to be a measly old frog hiding itself in some cattails, only to notice it was a species he hadn't seen in the valley since he was small. The normally reserved man startled you with how much he rambled on, pointing out to everyone the key features on the amphibian that made it unique. You came to realize shortly after that the frog Sebastian doted on wasn't the only unique thing there that afternoon. He was quite the peculiar specimen himself. 

Of course, he harbored a lot of problems, too. In your time knowing Sebastian, he flew off the handle more than once. Abigail and Sam pretty much wrote the instruction manual for how to bring their troubled companion back down to Earth.

Despite all the warning signs he pitched into the ground around him, you never stopped to read them - you trudged right on through, moving past the caution tape to see him for what he truly was. Even at his worst, when you stood toe to toe with him after confiding to him about your pregnancy, you never perceived him to be an uncaring, untrustworthy monster. His actions back then screamed anger, confusion, and hurt. It took you a considerable amount of time and patience to see it that way, but you knew in your heart it was the right thing to do.

And when he showed up at your home, unprompted, and handed over those chocolates for Valentine's day? It was obvious then. There was indeed a good guy beneath all of that repressed emotion and angst.

Right then and there, Sebastian wormed his way into your heart. And you had no intentions of forcing him out of there.

 _Make yourself at home_.

* * *

During all your anxiety-induced research when you first found out you were expecting, few things made you as uneasy as the invasiveness some of the appointments did. You missed out on the joys of having a transvaginal ultrasound, knock on wood, but the pap smear Harvey did at the very beginning was uncomfortable to say the least. At least Sebastian wasn't around for that one.

One of the less humiliating medical requirements you found was the glucose tolerance test. It was simple on paper: a routine visit to the clinic to chug down some unnaturally sweet, syrupy drink, waiting around twiddling your thumbs for an hour, and then getting some blood drawn before getting booted on out of there. If your numbers were normal, you didn't have gestational diabetes. It was something you didn't pry too much into in fear of what you'd find and worry yourself unnecessarily, but from what you could gather, diabetes wasn't great, and it especially wasn't great if you were pregnant.

What didn't seem so self-explanatory was the mountains of feedback you'd found from other moms-to-be, echoing the negative side effects and how badly this supposed test was going to make you feel. Some quoted it to be bearable while others deemed it downright horrid. The conflicting emotions didn't sit well with your already nervous momma brain.

For the longest, you convinced yourself to not sweat it. You'd find out what it was like for yourself when the time came for it. And, according to your sources, you had more than half the pregnancy away before you were forced to deal with it.

But before you knew it, knock knock. Seven months, coming in hot.

After Sebastian stopped by on Valentine's day for some coffee and light company, he insisted you start texting him more if you needed anything. Worry pulled at your heart - what if you became a bother? How often would talking to him be okay? How would you know you weren't interrupting his work? Did he even truly care, or was he doing that purely out of obligation?

Your brain spat the last threat out, and you sat on it for a lot longer than you were willing to admit. There wasn't any way Sebastian didn't have the best intentions at heart. You'd seen the way he pushed himself into your life, unrelenting in his quest to support you no matter what. The more time dragged on, and the bigger you got, the more overbearing he became. You were supposed to be the mother hen, but there he was, taking the spotlight from you.

You'd be lying if you said it didn't keep your heart warm, no matter how cold the rest of the outside world stayed.

The first time you texted Sebastian after that, it was asking for a favor. An honest to goodness one. 

_'Can you come over and help me weed the garden? Kind of hard to bend over now. I feel like humpty-dumpty.'_

You were sure to reward him with a cup of coffee, piping hot and ready before he even arrived. For safe measures, you purposefully avoided handing him one of your 'good' mugs, so he didn't get the chance to poke fun at them. (He did anyway, much to your chagrin, after he saw through your plan.) The eventful afternoon was pleasant, the regular banter bouncing between you both distracting you from the aches in your feet and hands after all the hard work.

The next time you reached out, you had to admit that it was for something you probably could've done yourself. 

_'Guess who forgot to go to Pierre's this morning to buy seeds for spring. Are you free to take care of my shopping list sometime today?'_

He was available, as it turned out, and more than eager to assist you in your clumsy state. Another round of coffee waited for him on the kitchen table, perched on one of your coasters, ready for him to enjoy after he sat down the bag full of seeds from the store next to it.

It became a tradition, somewhere along the line. You'd require some sort of help and in return you never failed to come through with a peace offering of caffeine. The dark circles never faded from below his lashes, but a twinkle of life moved into those coal black eyes nonetheless. You had a sneaking suspicion it wasn't the coffee doing its magic, though.

The night before your twenty eight week appointment, you broke the cycle of requests with a simple conversation starter.

_'You awake?'_

A silly question for a perpetual insomniac, but you had to be considerate.

_'At only nine thirty? Id be a coward not to be'_

His reply was near immediate. You smirked at his response. 

_'I figured as much. You mind if I ramble? I can't sleep.'_

_'Sure. I can come over if you need it'_

As much as you'd enjoy the company, if Sebastian showed up in the dead of night, possibly wearing a pair of pajamas that very well could be eye candy, you would definitely explode. You'd seen him like that during a sleepover with the gang once. Baggy, oversized t-shirts and sweatpants did that man _wonders_.

Nope. Your hormones were already out of control. You needed none of that. 

_'Nah, I'm okay. I don't wanna bother you.'_

_'Youre never a bother, stupid. Whats up?'_

If you didn't know him better, you'd be offended by the nickname. But such were the odd ways of Sebastian's attempts to be friendly.

_'Just worried about tomorrow. I have to get this dumb test done and they gotta take blood. I don't know why, but it's freaking me out. I'm scared it'll make me sick like everyone else I've heard from online. Also, I haven't eaten since dinner and I can't have breakfast, so that's kind of a killjoy.'_

_'Im sure youll be fine. I'll be with you the whole time. We can grab some lunch afterwards if you promise not to give it back :P'_

Wow, the emoticon was new. He had a whole library of emojis on his phone but settled with the classics and did it manually instead. Hipster. Also… was that offer a date? Or were you seriously misreading things? You'd be a nutcase to refuse the offer, but still. That was a curveball.

_'Deal. I'll be sure to aim directly for your shoes. Thank you, though. I look forward to it.'_

That sounded like you were fully agreeing to the idea. Whoops. You continued on to clear up any confusion, topping your message off with a smiley face in kind.

_'The food. Not the vomit. Goodnight, Seb. :)'_

You didn't get a response following that, but you tried not to think too deeply into it. He could've lied and said he wasn't busy just to appease you. Not to mention you threatened to ruin his kicks, and if the roles were reversed, you'd most definitely drop the conversation after that too. The nagging voice in the back of your head came back with a vengeance regardless. 

Rapid changes in your moods became a regular occurrence. That dead bird Milo so pleasantly dragged into the farmhouse to give you? You cried over it for hours. The shoelaces on your boots that flat out refused to tie correctly despite your best efforts? Those got flung across the floor as soon as you deemed it useless to try and fix, a trail of frustrated tears following in their wake. The time Sebastian came over to help you set up your new sprinklers, and you got to familiarize yourself with the lean muscles of his arms when he shed his hoodie? You had material for _weeks_ with that number, and thoughts of that nature didn't occur all that often. For the most part.

Your brain was already a whirlwind of conflicting emotions, anything liable to kick up some dust and get you in a dither. Thinking too deeply and indulging the unproductive, incessant negative thoughts that popped into your head now and again became a second hobby. You were stuck in your house for the majority of the day, with no company besides your cat. The downtime that the extended resting periods gave you was horrible about making you an overthinking, overwhelmed mess. The last thing you needed was for these realizations about the hundred things you felt to become a part of your nightly routine, but the brain never disappoints.

All that you could do in times like those was sit back and wait for sleep to find you instead of scouring it out yourself. Other moms online weren't exaggerating in the slightest when they said that the third trimester was hellish when it came to sleeping. With a handful of pillow adjustments between your knees and enough kicks to the ribs to drive you bonkers, you were finally able to get some rest a miraculous hour and a half later. 

You deliberately ignored the voice in your head that convinced you it wouldn't be half as hard to sleep if you had a certain pair of arms around you, instead of being cradled by nothing but air. 

They were right, of course, but you didn't have to listen.

* * *

You were exhausted. So, so exhausted.

Your grand idea to schedule your appointment as early in the morning to get it done and over with so you could get back home as soon as possible was stupid.

What's more, people getting too comfortable was stupid. Yes, you were "really getting up there." You had what, two? Three months left? The steady increase in weight over the past few weeks was enough of a reminder that you hardly looked like yourself anymore. You didn't need the whole town - no matter how well meaning - to point out how big you were. Thanks but no thanks.

And what was with people and touching you? It was endearing at first, but you swore at one point you were going to say fuck it and bite the next hand that reached for your stomach. If Sebastian hadn't gotten to feel anything yet, what made anyone else think they were special enough to take the chance away from him?

Gosh, you seemed like a witch. The 'no eating after midnight' rule Harvey instilled for this appointment made you feel even more like a gremlin. 

On the upside, instead of being woken up by the abrasiveness of your alarm, it was Sebastian drumming at your door that you first woke up to. You didn't remember specifically asking him to do such a thing, and a quick scroll through your message history didn't reveal anything of the sort either. There was no telling if he actually set an alarm for himself and managed to follow through with making his way down to you, or if he merely stayed up all night and figured why the hell not. Either way, you weren't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. 

Time and time again that man found new ways to surprise you. 

Sebastian was getting more openly affectionate. He had been, for the longest now. First it was the reassuring hand squeezes, then the whole 'falling asleep on each other' fiasco after the concert. The latest addition to the list was by far your favorite - those rare but delightful moments where he rested a hand on the small of your back.

You thought it accidental the first couple of times, in all honesty. Catching himself when he was caught off balance, or perhaps simply letting you know he was behind you where you couldn't spot him to avoid getting bumped into. But when the morning of your latest appointment came around and you gained the attention of Evelyn and Alex, it was anything but a mistake.

Alex had been walking alongside the elderly woman, hauling a surplus of fertilizer over one shoulder to spare her from taking care of it herself. Evelyn beamed when she caught your eye, a huge grin twisting her wrinkled face. Her grandson didn't see what the fuss was about, it appeared, but you couldn't care less for his opinion - he wasn't the guy occupying the vacancy in your heart.

Evelyn - bless her sweet soul - toddled her way over to you and Sebastian in front of the clinic, Alex following in her footsteps. Sebastian was already standing shoulder to shoulder with you, but at the sight of the brunette approaching, he inched impossibly closer.

You entertained Evelyn for a few minutes, pushing past the shakiness and fatigue to successfully chatter, but Sebastian caught the weariness in your voice. He'd spent too much time around you to not notice those small bits and pieces of your mannerisms.

"We'd love to keep talking, but she's got an appointment coming up soon and we need to head on in so she can check in," Sebastian broke in. At that, a warm hand - impossibly warm, actually, was he a radiator in disguise? - returned to your lower back, sliding over to one side above your hips and carefully squeezed to pull you towards the door. "I'm sure ____ will keep in touch with you, Miss Evelyn."

You didn't have time to register the whole ordeal as it went down. With Sebastian at your side, you couldn't make out the expression he was sending Alex's way, but if the way the other man shrunk the slightest bit was anything to go off of, you were willing to bet it wasn't the most welcoming look. You knew the pair didn't play nicely together, a history between them unbeknownst to you, but there wasn't an immediate need to shelter you from him. Even so, it definitely caught your attention and made you warm in the face to think about.

"Come on," his hand gave one last gentle tug, peering down at you softly, "let's get going." 

The empty space left behind by his hand burned, yet the only painful thing about the loss was how it made your head spin.

You had to remind yourself how to breathe so you could function effectively enough to get the necessary paperwork done.

* * *

The drink wasn't the worst part of this tolerance test. Before moving into the valley, your diet… could've used some improvements. You weren't unused to the levels of sugary sweetness that the drink Harvey handed you contained. The five minute timeframe he established was plenty enough time to get it all down, even if you needed to slow down a handful of times to fan away the nausea.

It was the waiting around that got you. Harvey and Maru gave you two some privacy while they went back to fill out charts and other necessary tasks, but you kind of wished they hadn't. 

Sebastian was a good partner - not one romantic in nature of course, just the proper term for your escort to these visits - but he wasn't Sam or Abigail. He couldn't keep up a conversation for long. The back and forth teasing could only take you both so far, and neither of you were relaxed enough to let loose and play around. It rubbed you the wrong way how he promised to be with you the whole time. True, he was physically present, but emotionally was another story.

Your anger fizzled shortly after it sparked, however.

Sebastian had held it together for the first twenty minutes or so, but the halfway mark through the hour-long waiting period got the best of him. One leg bounced up and down relentlessly, followed by the other in tandem. When tapping failed to ease his nerves, he began subtly picking at the skin of his lips, staring off at nothing.

For once, you were the one doing the comforting.

"Hey," your voice bounced off of the shiny white walls, making it unnaturally loud in the then silent room, "you're doing that thing with your lips. Don't make yourself bleed."

Sebastian's feet settled and he pulled his hand away from his mouth to wipe some spit on a pant leg. "Sorry."

"Don't apologize. I just don't want you to hurt yourself, dummy," you told him lightly. "Need to talk about something? We've got a whole thirty minutes left."

"Might as well," he sighed after a pause. "I think your anxiety from last night was contagious," he frowned at his newly chipped nail polish. "I just can't get my mind to settle down. I know everything's fine, but just…"

Sebastian folded his arms around his chest, closing himself off from the rest of the world. "I've just been thinking too much, lately. I'm worried."

You scanned his face for any possible clues for his stress, but your efforts proved fruitless. "What about, exactly?"

Sebastian rolled his shoulders back into a shrug, huffing in the process as he found his words. The six saddest, most wounded words you'd ever had the displeasure of hearing fall out of his mouth.

"That I won't be good enough."

 _'You're good enough for me'_ is what you were dying to tell him.

"What makes you think that?" is the compromise you came up with.

"It's stupid," Sebastian's head lowered, brows furrowing. "It's stupid, but I don't know how to help it."

He cut you off before you could reassure him he was anything but. "I know what you're gonna say. That I'm not bad or that I'm not stupid or something," the corner of his mouth twitched unpleasantly, "but save it. Please. You don't have to lie to me like everybody else does."

Shaking him by the shoulders seemed like a fantastic idea, but you didn't interrupt him, as per his request. 

"I guess seeing Alex fucked with me. Never liked his type anyway," Sebastian's eyes narrowed, "but it's also just because he reminds me of things I hate about myself. He works out. He eats good. He helps out with his grandparents, so he's obviously family-oriented."

Or he was doing what he could to keep the remaining roof over his head. You didn't make that comment out loud though.

"I don't know. When he came over, for a split second, I only could imagine you going through this with someone else," he shifted his arms until his elbows and forearms rested comfortably against his legs. His eyes began to cloud over, but you didn't dare bring it up. "Alex could do better than I can. Sam, too. And that weird guy that hangs out in the shack by the beach. They'd all be better dads than me."

"Don't say that. You don't know for sure how that'd go with any of them," you whispered. "And don't think about me with other guys. That's weird. I didn't end up in this situation with anyone but you, y'know. That shows my preferences, don't you think?"

You couldn't believe the shit that was coming out of your mouth, but by golly, seeing Sebastian turn fifty different shades of red was worth every ounce of embarrassment.

He had to swiftly inhale and puff all his bashfulness out with it. "That's not what I mean, you fuckin' minx." A hint of a country accent spilled out when he got tongue-tied like that. You adored it.

"I just mean that other guys would handle it better. I only _just now_ started becoming a part of this. Surely you remember how shitty I was at the start."

Yes, you did. But that wasn't him now. You hardly recognized the man sitting next to you as being the same guy from last summer.

"I do, but I accepted your apology a long time ago. You were stressed. I was too. But you're here now," you reached an open hand out towards him, hoping he'd get the hint. "That's all that matters to me, Seb. No matter what your head says otherwise."

Catching the movement of your arm from the corner of his eyes, Sebastian slowly but surely filled the open space of your palm, taking your hand and allowing you to lace your fingers together momentarily. You lost yourself in running your thumb along the length of his hand, soothing away all of those wretched insecurities. 

A knock at the door made you both startle, immediately releasing your hands from one another's grip. The door handle twitched to life as Maru cracked open the door.

"Hey! Just checking that everything's still going okay," she looked down and tapped a finger to her watch. "You're almost done. When it hits eight thirty we'll come back in and take blood and be finished."

"What, you're not gonna give it back?" Sebastian joked flatly. 

You side-eyed him and reveled in the cocky half smile he gave back. "I'll make them take yours instead if you make a joke that bad again," you snickered. "I'm doing alright. Thanks for checking in."

Maru's eyes bounced between the both of you, the corner of her mouth curling in a pleased grin for some reason. "M'kay. I'll leave you be for now. Send errand boy over there out if you need anything," she added with a wink.

"Errand boy, pfft." Sebastian crossed his arms again and playfully scowled after the door shut.

He seemed distracted from his earlier troubles, but just to be safe, you changed the subject back to something less personal. "You thought about any names yet? We should probably start brainstorming."

"Now that you mention it, yeah. I guess I've stumbled across a couple," Sebastian craned his neck over your way.

"Really? C'mon. Now you gotta share," you wiggled your feet in excitement.

"Okay," he cleared his throat. "Hear me out: 'Throg the Unconquerable'."

"Seb, what the fuck."

"That not good enough for you princess? Fine. How about…" Sebastian tapped a finger to his chin. You gave up remaining hope that he would pull anything serious out of his ass at that point. "'Grag the Honorable'? C'mon. You gotta admit that one's badass. Nobody will fuck with a girl named 'Grag'."

"Nobody would talk to a girl with the name 'Grag' period," you laughed behind one of your hands. That pet name, even if sarcastic, had your stomach doing flips. "I'm serious. Give me some actual ideas."

"Fine, fine, have it your way," Sebastian lifted his hands in defeat. "I always thought the name 'Quinn' was nice. It packs a certain punch."

"What is with you and needing our daughter's name to be violent?"

"Not violent. Just strong. Get it right."

"Fair enough. 'Quinn' is nice," you pondered on it. "If we're throwing suggestions out, I knew a girl in school named 'Harper'. I think that's good, too."

"Like a harp player? Was your friend a bard?" Sebastian quipped. 

"Literally only you would find a way to make this nerdy, Seb."

"That's a lie. Abigail and Sam are fellow nerds and would appreciate my references," he theatrically huffed. "Whatever. 'Harper' is okay too, I guess. I still like 'Throg' better."

"I thought you preferred 'Grag'."

"That was Sebastian from the past. Present Sebastian thinks 'Throg' is superior."

"You're hopeless." _And I'm hopelessly in love._

Half an hour of exchanging name ideas later, the pair of you managed to compile a strong list of candidates. Looking at your phone memo, you gave it a final review before Harvey returned.

▪︎ Harper  
▪︎ Quinn  
▪︎ ~~Throg~~ (Sebastian stole your phone and added a frowny face when you scratched that one out.)  
▪︎ Addison  
▪︎ Jesse/Jessie  
▪︎ Thalia  
▪︎ Blaine  
▪︎ Delilah  
▪︎ Rosie/Rosa  
▪︎ Sol  
▪︎ Ash  
▪︎ Olivia  
▪︎ Amelie  
▪︎ Lillian  
▪︎ Camille

"Fifteen suitors in total, not counting 'Throg'," your eyes flipped through the list of names. "I think this is a good starting point if I do say so myself."

"Hey, you still kept 'Throg'," Sebastian leaned over to snoop at your screen, confirming you hadn't deleted his suggestion completely. 

You shoved a hand on his face and pushed him back into his seat. "I only kept it there to laugh at. Don't get your hopes up."

"I pray Yoba helps you see the wrongs of your ways someday, _____."

You didn't get a chance to throw something back at Sebastian before Harvey and Maru shuffled into the room again. Dread resettled in your stomach as Maru headed straight for the drawers by the counter, pulling out the sterile packages for the syringe and needle. 

"Still feeling alright?" Harvey chipped in. He raised his voice a touch to redirect your attention from Maru's rustling. "Don't worry. You've had me stab you before," he chuffed, "I recall getting it right on the first jab."

You heard Sebastian make a strangled noise in the back of his throat. Somebody didn't like sharp pokey things, either.

"Yeah, a little dizzy, but nothing too bad. My head's killing me, though," your eyes gazed up at the ceiling lights to test if the fluorescence still bothered you. It did, you noted with a wince.

"Dreadfully sorry to hear that, my dear," Harvey scooted his chair towards the instrument stand Maru rolled his way. He peeled open a pair of sterile gloves, the sound of the latex snapping against his wrist making you gulp. "I'll try and wrap this up as quickly as I can and I can turn the lights down while we wait for the results. That sound okay?"

"Peachy," you replied, skin becoming clammy as Maru delicately tied a rubber torniquet around your upper arm. She gave your shoulder a reassuring pat before she walked away and allowed Harvey to do his thing.

One full blood tube later (surprisingly, Harvey hadn't drained you dry like it felt he did) and your arm was freed from the tourniquet's clench. Sebastian looked even worse for wear than you did, his head resting between his legs to keep him from passing out. Big baby.

"We should have your results within the hour! I'll let you know as soon as we have them," Harvey chirped in the doorway. "Still need these lights dimmed?" You eagerly nodded, and Harvey slid the panel on the lightswitch, the intensity of it dimming gradually until it was reasonable.

Your head fell back on the pillow with a soft _*thump*_ , the effects of the lowered lights sinking in immediately. Sebastian, now fully recovered, pulled his own phone out of his pocket, presumably to let Robin or the gang know it was over. When the screen flashed in your direction, you clenched your eyes shut and covered them with your hands in a pitiful attempt to block the sudden intrusion out.

"My bad," Sebastian squeaked. He turned away from you, using his torso to shield you from the brightness. "That bad, huh? I'm sorry."

Relief washed over you as soon as he blocked out the light. You lowered your hands down from your face and perched them protectively over your belly. "It's okay, probably just a migraine from being hungry or something. Hopefully this will be over soon." 

"Yeah," Sebastian agreed with you, the sound of him tapping against his keyboard taking a turn at being the next most annoying thing to you. It wasn't constant like the light was, at least. You could grin and bear it.

As soon as you closed your eyes, it felt like, the door was opening again, a miserable amount of light from the rest of the clinic seeping in until Maru shut it snug behind her.

"Good news, _____! Your results came back well within the normal range, so we won't have to make you come back and do the three-hour test."

"Oh thank fuck," you slipped out without thinking, rubbing your eyes with the back of your hands. Maru simply chuckled, while Sebastian got a good laugh out of it. Jerk.

"Harvey got a phone call so unfortunately you're stuck with me. Anyway, now that you're in your third trimester, we're going to be seeing you on a bi-weekly basis for a while. We'd like to start discussing your plans for the big day this next visit," the nurse clapped her hands once, stopping abruptly when she remembered your head. "I can hardly believe it myself. Have you guys picked out any names?"

Sebastian perked up from his phone. "Throg-"

You slapped a hand across his mouth without so much as looking in his direction. "Ignore him. Yes. We've discussed them. He seems to think his suggestions are final."

Sebastian repeated himself, fiercer this time, but his voice being muffled by your palm only made it sound like he was saying 'frog'. He would consider naming his kid frog, probably. Here's hoping he wouldn't take it into consideration.

"Right, I'll leave you both to it then," Maru rolled her eyes at her brother's foolishness with a fond smile. "We'd expect you back here on the 27th, if that fits your schedules."

"That sounds great. Thank you," you brought your hand back, slowly in case he decided to go off again. "I'll call if anything changes."

* * *

Everything was wrapped up around nine thirty when all was said and done. 

Sebastian held the door open for you on the way out. "My big plan was to take you out to the Stardrop, but…"

"Closed?" You answered for him, giving a polite nod of thanks at his gesture.

"Yep," he popped the 'p' noise, "until noon." Sebastian grimaced, looking dreadfully disappointed in his time management.

"It's no biggie. Seriously," out of habit, you went to give his hand the tiniest of squeezes before letting go. "I can find something at home. Don't sweat it."

Sebastian vigorously shook his head, hair flipping back and forth with the sudden motion. "You need to eat. I can feel how shaky your hands are. I'm not letting you walk home by yourself like that."

You wanted to melt under the gaze of those impossibly soft eyes. Groaning, you rolled your head to the side and stared back at him. "Fine, but I'm paying for my half. Where would we even go?"

Sebastian flicked a thumb over his shoulder. "The JojaMart just opened. We can grab some junk there," his voice shrank as he spoke. A hand rubbed the back of his neck, but he played it off as rubbing a kink out of one of his shoulders. "Maybe we can have a picnic or something. Appreciate the weather before it gets too hot again."

"A picnic, huh? Never pegged you as the romantic type," your face lit up in spite of your teasing. "Pinch me, I must be dreaming."

"I'm not threatening the sanctity of my masculinity by eating food outside," Sebastian stuttered, smile crookening in his struggle to compose himself. This side of him was beyond adorable. You debated continuing on with the borderline flirting, but you weren't that level of sadistic and he could probably get you back tenfold for it. Better safe than sorry.

"I wasn't saying no," you straightened up to look him dead in the face. He needed to see how serious you were about his offer. "I think that's a really nice idea. Let's go then." 

You started your stroll towards the JojaMart, Sebastian lagging behind at first. He briskly caught up to your pace and met you at your side once more, finding it was his newly assigned position to guard and watch over you. 

The trip to the store was cut short when the plethora of conflicting smells assaulted your senses. You were mortified by the idea of having to make Sebastian run around until he found an employee - most likely Shane - to clean up the mess you'd leave behind. Avoiding causing such a scene, you nabbed the first snacks that called out your name, even if it made Sebastian do double takes at the odd combinations of food you picked out.

He attempted to weasel his way into paying for your half of the snacks but you didn't give into it - even when he batted his eyelashes at you like you had done to convince him to stay for coffee a few weeks ago. You summoned the strength to put one of the plastic dividers on the conveyer belt to separate your side from his, handing your money over with a smug grin at Sebastian. The gentleman act was cute, but not today. He'd need other ways to charm you - if you both began refusing help from the other, you might as well turn it into a little game for shits and giggles. Sebastian did enjoy his video games, after all, and he was the best subject to tease with those precious reactions of his.

Once you made it past the swinging doors, Sebastian took an abrupt turn to the right at the river. When you shot him a confused look, the punk gave you a pleased smirk.

"I know the perfect spot," he looked forwards in the direction he was leading you. "Trust me. We're just taking a shortcut."

You shrugged. What was the worst that could happen?

Sebastian's shortcut led you trailing the side of the river, up towards what looked like a dead end. Halfway through the walk a thought seemed to cross his face, and before you could ask what was wrong, he scooted you inwards away from the riverbank, situating himself until he was the person closest to it. Did he really think you were going to fall in or something? Goofball. But in all fairness, you could hardly see your feet anymore. So maybe you missing a step and tumbling in wasn't so farfetched. 

A dinky looking wooden bridge - if it could be called that - made its way into view, effectively creating a path to the other side. The river itself was thin enough that one solid running jump could have you well over it, but you were also seven months pregnant. You'd be doing good to run, let alone jump. Thankfully Sebastian felt similarly on the idea, walking a good two thirds over and helping you cross, both hands holding your own to ensure you kept your balance. The trek went smoothly until the very end when you missed a step, but you fell into Sebastian's chest instead of the dirt, his arms reflexively wrapping around your back to catch you (lingering moreso than they truly had to), so all-in-all it made for a pleasant experience.

A set of stairs was the last obstacle you conquered on your voyage. After your near fall earlier, Sebastian refused to let you climb up without the added assistance of his hand being a makeshift safety rail. You were fine and dandy with that - any opportunity to enjoy that tiny amount of physical contact was a good one.

Past the stairs you finally recognized the path from town curving past the Community Center and towards his house.

"You said you knew a nice spot, Seb," you elbowed him. He curiously side-eyed you, kicking a rock out from under his feet. "If you wanted to take me back to your place so badly you could've just asked."

Sebastian's only defense was shoving a hand in your face and nudging you away from him, as you had done to him earlier. "Shut up. I'm taking you by the lake. Besides," he chuckled under his breath, "too little too late for that, darlin'."

Damn his drawl. Now it was your turn to curl inwards in embarrassment. Lesson learned.

* * *

Sebastian wasn't lying - the secluded spot by the mountain lake was a really nice place. Nestled underneath an old pine, surrounded by the fresh and tingly scent of the tree, was a prime picnic location. The only missing factor was an actual picnic blanket, but beggars can't be choosers.

Besides, you weren't about to make Sebastian get up and search his house for a suitable one when the view lying next to him was already perfect.

You weren't sure how long you both stayed like that, your back pressed against the trunk of the pine tree while Sebastian lied down and rested his arms behind his head. He'd snagged himself a bag of sea-salt chips and chowed down like it was his last meal. What you'd settled with wasn't near as tantalizing as the wonderful saltiness of the chips, but per Sebastian's advice, you kept the amount of stealing from his bag to a minimum.

The clouds passed overhead, not a care in the world, and when you glanced over to watch Sebastian as he rambled about his latest project for work, you couldn't find anything more in the world to pay attention to besides him.

When he finally ran out of steam discussing work, Sebastian startled you as he shuffled to his feet suddenly. You spotted a pale hand inching towards his back pocket, a pack of cigarettes he'd unfortunately been holding onto all day within his grasp. You frowned behind his back at the sight, but as soon as his nimble fingers wrapped around the pack to pull it out, he shoved it back inside his pocket with unnecessary force.

Sebastian walked a couple of steps forward towards the lake, lost in thought as he eyeballed the islands in the center of the water. He ran a hand through his bangs and pushed them off to the side, uncovering the eye hiding underneath. 

"You know," he kept facing away from you and mumbled, tone deathly serious, "this is the spot I always came out to smoke at. The last time I did it was before the first time I went to Harvey's with you."

You couldn't fathom where he was going with this. He'd pulled a complete 180 on a previously decent conversation out of nowhere.

He sensed your confusion. "I just thought it was funny, is all. I probably could've picked a better spot," he wiggled one of his shoes into the dirt, staring at the ground. "Back then I didn't think I wanted anything to do with this whole thing, if I'm being honest."

"I don't feel that way now, of course!" he turned to look at you, holding his hands defensively with wide eyes. "I just mean to say that I'm happy, I guess. I couldn't have expected anything like this to happen, but I'm okay with it now."

The sensation of your cheeks flushing returned, an overwhelmingly familiar occurrence nowadays. You let a soft, sincere smile overtake your features while you considered how to respond to his genuineness. 

"I'm really glad you came around, Seb," you finally admitted.

Sebastian didn't bother covering up his gulp. "I'm glad I did, too."

Suddenly, a strong, almost painful kick to your stomach shocked you into fully sitting up. Sebastian rushed over as soon as he heard you gasp, but cocked his head when your surprise turned into a hearty chuckle.

"I'm fine, don't worry," you beamed, outstretching an arm for Sebastian to help you stand. "Someone else is just really happy as well."

Sebastian helped raise you to your feet, the gears in his head not turning until you kept his hand in your grasp and pulled it to your stomach. His eyes shot open at that, his other hand joining in at the prospect of finally having his moment. It took a bit of coaxing, but sure enough, the baby kicked out at the pressure from outside, directly into Sebastian's waiting palms. 

" _Holy shit,_ " he swore, grinning maniacally as he stared at his hands. His eyes flicked up to yours, bursting into life with an abrupt, overjoyous laugh. "Holy shit!"

"See? She already-" you winced at the impact of a third, but ultimately lighter kick, "-already likes you. So much so she wants to beat you up."

"That's my 'Throg' for you!" Sebastian exclaimed. He let go of your stomach to squat down and get eye level with it. "C'mon. Gimme another one. One tap for 'Throg', two taps for 'Grag'."

"Trust me, these do not feel like just taps on my end," you corrected him. "And that's not how we're picking names."

To prove you wrong, sure enough, the baby delivered a whopping three point kick in the direction of Sebastian's voice.

"One.. two.. three?" Sebastian crooked his head as he finished counting. "What the hell does three taps mean, then?"

"It means 'shut up Dad'," you flicked Sebastian on the forehead. He let out a pitiful and clearly exaggerated whine. "I think her message was loud and clear."

"I think you're just biased, ma'am."

Whatever. He could have his fun this one time. Seeing that rare, impossibly handsome ear-to-ear grin was worth all the discomfort in the world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TELL ME THIS MAN WOULD NOT SUGGEST STUPID FANTASY NAME IDEAS LIKE THAT. i refuse to believe otherwise. plus my bf has been playing shadow of mordor and i've had to hear the GOOFIEST orc names and i took inspo from that silliness
> 
> do not take this as alex slander i love that boy i just needed some momentary Conflict
> 
> sorry if your name wasn't mentioned! it's not that i didn't enjoy every suggestion. i just couldn't possibly fit all of them into this one scene. i still appreciate every single entry!
> 
> i imagine when seb and reader stopped by the jojamart that shane caught seb's eyes and just sort of 😏 since seb denied reader being 'his girl' in the last chapter. teehee
> 
> i'm feeling motivated to pop this chapters out so expect the next update soon! see you then!!


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